Amnesia
by xSweetEternityx
Summary: [AU/AH] Chloe Saunders is a 1st year college student who has no memories prior to her adoption. Glimpses of hidden memories flash in her mind but they are not enough to know her true identity. She dreams of a boy who gave her a puzzle piece, but just who is he? Unknown to her, Chloe's time to figure out the truth is running out. If she fails, everyone she loves will be in danger.
1. Prologue

**A/N: Hello new readers and old readers! This is actually my fourth piece for Darkest Powers, but I love this fandom so much that I plan to do a lot more in the future. In my last fanfic, Never Alone, I had posted up a poll on my profile and asked for suggestions on fanfic genre. The majority of the votes went for an "Alternate Reality/Universe fanfic with powers", so this is what this fanfic is going to be. I actually had an idea for an AU without powers, but I'll save that for another time. :) I haven't completely figured out every little detail of this story, but I got enough down to start it. As for the rest, I'll figure it out when the time comes. As for an estimate on the length of this fanfic, I would probably say about 20-25 chapters averaging 3000-5000 words per chapter. Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy this one.  
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**Disclaimer: I don't own Darkest Powers**

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**Amnesia**

(A Darkest Powers Fanfic)

**Prologue – 13 years earlier...**

It was finally the day.

The day that I was going to live with my new mommy and daddy. Before today, I had seen them a few times in the house, each time bringing presents and candy for everyone. But I didn't think they would choose me. After all, I was the only one who couldn't remember her real mommy and daddy. Nor anything before I woke up in an unfamiliar bed and was brought to this place. Every time I try to remember, I couldn't see anything but darkness. It made my head hurt.

The other kids whisper about me. About how I don't remember anything. Everybody here knows who they are. Everybody except me. But that's not why they stay away.

I can see and hear things no one else can.

The grownups pat my head and tell the other kids that having "imaginary friends" was normal. But I knew that they didn't understand. The people that only I could see weren't "imaginary". They wouldn't laugh at me like the other kids. Instead, they would ask me things I didn't understand. Things that I couldn't do. But even then, they don't get mad. So I like them better than the kids who make fun of me. All the kids do. Except _him_.

Even if he can't see or hear them, he believes me when I say they are real. He is a little older than me, but he is much bigger. He is also smarter than everyone. But the other kids don't like him because he's different. Like me.

He is quiet like midnight, so I call him "Night" in my head. He doesn't say a lot to the others but he talks to me. And to the boy who comes to visit. But that other boy doesn't live here like we do. So I am his only friend here. He is also my only friend.

He is also why I can't leave.

I hide behind the shed in the backyard and make myself as small as I can. It is easy because I am smallest kid here. I had slipped out while Mrs. Talbot was talking to the lady and her husband. Both the woman and the man had been kind to me and I liked them. I liked the way the lady's eyes softened when she brushed my hair away from my face. I liked the way the man's voice was low and how his hands were rough but gentle. Whenever he talked to me, he would bend down so that I didn't have to look up.

I couldn't remember who my real mommy and daddy were, but I would have liked to think that they were like this couple. That was why it came as a surprise when Mrs. Talbot told me that they were here to take me away from this place. Away from Lyle House. Away from Night.

_I can't leave. I can't leave. I can't leave._

Maybe if I was quiet enough, they wouldn't find me. Maybe they would forget. Maybe they would choose a different kid instead. The last thought made my tummy hurt. I liked the couple and watching them leave would make me hurt. But leaving _him_ would hurt more. So I have to stay hidden. I closed my eyes. If I couldn't see, maybe no one could see me.

_As long as no one finds me. As long as no one finds me. As long as-_

"There you are," a voice whispers.

I opened my eyes to see Night peering at me, his face shadowed by the shed. "How d-did you find me?" I asked as he slipped in beside me.

He shrugged as he sat down. "I just knew," he answered as he squirmed to find a comfortable position.

I turned to look at him, his larger body barely fitting the space between the shed and the fence. It wasn't the first time he found me hiding. Whenever we played hide and seek, he always knew where I was hiding. No matter how good the place was. But whenever I tried to find him, it was impossible. I had asked him if he was cheating, but he had always said that he could hear me coming. Every time, I tried being quieter, but Night always won. He was the king of hide and seek. So it wasn't strange that he found me now.

"What are you doing here? Everyone is looking for you," Night whispered, bringing me out of my thoughts.

I hugged my knees and place my chin on top of them. "I don't wanna go," I whispered back.

A pause. Then, "Why not? You like them, don't you?"

I nodded as I thought about the couple. "Then why?" Night prodded.

Slowly, I released my legs and watched them slide down until they touched the grass. My feet couldn't even touch the fence. Not like his. "I don't want to..." I trailed off.

"'Don't want to' what?"

"...leave you."

A snort. "_That's_ the reason why you won't go?" he said, disbelief colouring his tone.

I scowled at him. "You're my best friend. You're not supposed to make fun of me," I muttered crossly.

He raised an eyebrow at me, something that I could never do. "I'm not. I'm just saying that that's a stupid reason."

"Is not."

"Is too."

I crossed my arms. "I don't care. I don't wanna go," I stated stubbornly.

I expected another quick comeback, but Night was silent for a long time. His face grew thoughtful as I thought he suddenly looked a lot older than 8 years old. Visitors always thought he was older due to his size but I don't think that's the only reason. Night was more mature than any other kid here. He took life seriously and I think that was because he had lost his entire family in a car accident. He didn't talk about them a lot, but I knew he missed them.

Sometimes when everyone else is asleep, I think that Night is lucky to have known his family. At least he knew he had a younger brother. I couldn't remember anything. I had woken up in an unfamiliar bed with nothing but a necklace. Whoever gave it to me must have loved me.

So why was I alone?

But at the same time, I wasn't completely alone. Night was with me. I didn't know anything about families, but I like to think that he was part of my family. That is why I'm scared to leave him behind. Because it meant that I would be by myself again.

When Night finally spoke, his voice was softer than I had ever heard it. "You know..." he started as I leaned in closer to hear him better. "... I think you should go with them."

My heart thumped so hard that it hurt. It felt worse than when the other kids made me bleed. "Y-you want me to go?" I questioned, my voice sounding small.

Night sighed. "I don't _want _you to go. But you should. You'll live a better life with those grownups," he said as he looked towards the house. "There's nothing for you here. You got a chance to get outta here, so I want you to take it."

I felt the tears prickle at my eyes and sniffled. I didn't want to be a baby, but I couldn't help it. "What about you?"

He turned back to look at me. "I'll be okay. I'll find a way to get outta here too. Just not right now."

At this point, I didn't care that I was crying. "But I don't know them!"

Night placed a gentle hand on my hair as he made soft _shush_ noises. "You will. They'll take good care of you. So please stop crying, Chloe."

Through my tears, I looked into his piercing eyes and saw that he really did want this for me. To get out of this place. To be with a family. To be loved. I rubbed my sleeve across my face and sniffled, trying to hold back my tears. "Is t-that what you want?"

Night's expression was torn between sadness and determination. After a long moment, he exhaled deeply and nodded once. "Yes."

I swallowed thickly as I pictured myself with the man and woman. I didn't know what it would be like and I was scared. But then I looked at Night. I could see that he really wanted me to get a better life. And he believed that the couple could give it to me. So for him, I had to be brave. "Okay," I whispered at last. "I'll-" I took a deep shuddering breath and expelled the last words. "-I'll go."

Night said nothing as he nodded again. His shoulders slumped as he slid his hands into his pockets. I knew that even though he was the one who convinced me to leave, there was a part of him that was sad. I wanted to make him feel better, but I didn't know how. So I just said, "I'll miss you."

I watched as his jaw twitched, his dark brows knitting together. I couldn't read the whirl of emotion on his face as he pulled his hands out of his pockets. He held his closed fist out towards me. Wordlessly, I cupped my hands together and he dropped a light papery object into the palm of my hand. I glanced down and blinked.

It was a piece of a puzzle.

I gave him a questioning look. Night looked down at the puzzle piece before meeting my eyes. "I want you to keep this. It's part of a puzzle that I'm working on," he said.

I frowned in confusion. Why did he give it to me? "But you can't finish your puzzle without it," I pointed out and he nodded.

"That's exactly why I'm giving it to you."

"Huh?"

Night took a deep breath as he folded my hands until my fingers were closed over the object. "One day, we'll meet again. When I get out of here, I won't stop looking for you. It might take a few years. Or a few decades. But I will find you," he said softly. "And then, we can finally finish the puzzle. Together."

I glanced down at my hands, feeling the puzzle piece against my skin. Before, it had seemed like an ordinary thing, but now it was something important.

I had to keep it safe.

"Do you promise?" I asked.

A small smile tugged on his lips. "I promise. I've always found you, haven't I?"

I smiled back at him, thinking back to our countless games of hide and seek. He was right; he had always found me. And he would this time too. We sat there in silence for a moment longer before a low voice was heard calling my name.

"Chloe? Where are you kiddo?"

It was the man. The man that was going to be my daddy. I glanced up at Night who nodded, signalling for me to go. I took another second to look at him, to remember his face, his kindness and his warmth.

Then without another word, I stepped out from behind the shed and ran towards the man.

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**A/N: Well, that ended up a lot longer than I had originally planned for the prologue, but it gives a fairly good view into Chloe's past and keeping things mysterious at the same time. I apologize for the word repetition and simple language, but given that Chloe is a young child here, I tried to keep it plausible. As you most likely deduced, Night is Derek, but the reason why I named him "Night" instead of calling him "Derek" is because this is a hazy memory for Chloe and due to that reason, she doesn't remember his real name, only a nickname she had given him. Does she actually remember this event in full detail? The answer is no, but as you'll see in the next chapter, Chloe knows enough to get the general idea of this memory. **

**And in case you missed it the first time: Do the characters have powers in this fanfic? The answer is "Yes".**

**With only one class this semester, I hope to update this fanfic a lot more frequently than I did with Never Alone. Anyway, I hope that you'll stick around. Please look forward to the next chapter!  
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**-posted: April 27, 2013**


	2. Vague Dreams

**A/N: Hi everyone! Thanks so much for your warm responses on the prologue! I was initially really worried about how the idea would fly, but I was comforted by your reviews. At the moment, the story starts off pretty slow since it's the introduction, but I promise that it'll pick up. If you want a really good DP fanfic, I highly recommend Eletha Landon's Forbidden. Go read it if you haven't done so already. :)  
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**Disclaimer: I don't own Darkest Powers.**

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**Chapter 1: Vague Dreams**

It was that dream again.

I've had it a few times growing up, but never before had it been as long and clear as it had been today. Out of all of my dreams, it was my favourite. Not only was it a memory of the day that I was adopted by the Saunders family, but it also reminded me of the promise. The one made by the boy I had called "Night".

I reached into my pillow case and felt around until my fingers touched a small papery object. Gently, I pulled it out and examined it closely, as I had done many times over the years. By now, it was as familiar as my own hand.

It was a small puzzle piece, barely the size of my thumb. Grayish paper covered the back while the front was decorated with a sleek off-black colour. A small white dot was located a few millimetres from the edge. I ran my thumb over the raised bump, feeling the tiny circle as well as the line that protruded from it. I have done this so often that the edges of the puzzle piece were frayed from my touch.

Each time, I struggled to remember the boy's- Night's- face, but the memory of my life at the group home was hazy. I would catch glimpses here and there, but that was it.

At least those memories were somewhat there.

I couldn't say the same for the ones for my time before Lyle House. Sometimes, I would see a snapshot of something, but even then, they wouldn't linger. It became impossible to tell what was a memory and what wasn't. As a child, my parents had taken me to a handful of shrinks, but they couldn't help me. That chest of memories refused to be opened without a key. And that key, according to the psychiatrists, was time.

Eventually, I had had enough of the plain white walls, soothing music and burning incense. Each office tried to recreate the cozy, home-like feeling with their over sized sofas, but to me, it felt fake. So I stopped pursuing my lost memories.

I had to stick with the ones I had. The ones I knew were real. This puzzle piece was proof that it wasn't a figment of my over creative brain.

Sometimes, when it was quiet like it was now, I would turn the puzzle piece over and over in my hand, thinking of a boy whose face I couldn't remember. I didn't even have a recollection of knowing his name. If I met that boy, now a man, on the streets, I wouldn't recognize him.

That made me wonder. Was he still out there somewhere, looking for me? Or was I forgotten the moment I had stepped out of his life? The latter was highly likely.

After all, it was just a promise made between two lonely orphans.

Finding one person in the sea of seven billion people was impossible, no matter how good you were at hide and seek. It was stupid of me to think that we would be reunited the way that people were in movies. Life wasn't a film or a fairy tale; stuff like that just didn't happen.

So why did I continue to keep this puzzle piece?

That was a good question. More than once, I've considered throwing it away and moving on with my life. I even did it once. Not on purpose, though.

I was probably about ten when I had forgotten that I had left the puzzle piece in my jacket pocket before going out into the small patch of woods behind my house. It got hot and eventually, I took off my jacket and threw it on a bush. What I didn't realize what that the puzzle piece had fallen out. When I found out that I had lost it, I cried harder than I had ever done in my life.

By then, it was already dark, so my mom had wanted to wait until morning to go and find it. But my dad knew how important it was to me, so he got a description of the area that I was playing in and took a flashlight. I laid in bed that night, unable to sleep. To someone else, it was just a puzzle piece. But to me, it felt as though I had abandoned that little boy in the forest. Alone.

When my dad finally came back, he was covered in dirt and had leaves in his hair, but he found my puzzle piece. I remember throwing my arms around him as I clenched my puzzle piece tightly in my fists, unwilling to let it go. It wasn't the first time my dad went to such lengths to do something like that for me. He would do anything in his power for me.

And I loved him for it.

I flipped the puzzle piece over again, inspecting it for the millionth time, wondering if there was something that I had missed. Even if I didn't really think that I would ever see the boy again, I couldn't bring myself to throw it away. Like the necklace that hung around my neck, this puzzle piece represented my life before living with this family. No matter how little I remembered, these tokens were a piece of me.

I couldn't part with them.

Slowly, I lowered my arm and surveyed the cold room around me with an evil look. What I wouldn't give to stay in bed all day, but unfortunately, nothing would get done. I stole another few minutes of warmth before I threw my covers aside and took my morning shower. Half an hour later, I emerged from the bathroom, awake and dressed. Soft instrumental music wafted from downstairs and I could smell the aroma of fresh coffee. I smiled as I descended the staircase and entered the kitchen.

My dad had his back to me as he hummed off tune to Bocherinni's Minuet. Steven Saunders was a lot of things, but a singer he was not. "Bocherinni's probably rolling in his grave right now since you just butchered his masterpiece," I said, as my dad turned with a piece of toast in one hand.

He raised an eyebrow at me, amusement dancing in his dark blue eyes. "You think so, kiddo?" he questioned as he suddenly looked forlorn. "Darn. There goes my dreams of being the next Michael Bublé."

I sputtered a laugh as he spread strawberry jam over one side of the slice of bread. "Wrong genre, dad. He sings jazz stuff," I said as I struck a pose. "See? Jazz hands!"

My dad chuckled as he moved aside for me to grab the milk from the fridge. I reached up into the cupboards and grabbed a box of frosted flakes. Maybe they weren't the most mature cereal for a nineteen year old, but regular frosted flakes were so boring. I didn't care what nutritionists said; everything tasted better with a lot of sugar. "So what are you doing up so early? It's not time for your first class, is it?" my dad asked as he grabbed his plate and headed towards the table.

I shook my head as I poured hot water into my mug, waiting for my tea to seep. I wasn't much of a coffee drinker, but I loved tea. Especially orange pekoe. "No, I had a dream."

"Of mannequins coming alive and chasing you?"

He was referring to a vivid nightmare I had when I was a kid. I rolled my eyes as I took my seat across from him. "You may laugh at how stupid it sounds, but take a good look at those dolls and you'll think that they're pretty creepy too," I mumbled as I chewed my frosted flakes.

I watched as my dad fought to keep a grin from surfacing. After a moment's struggle, he took a sip of his coffee and said, "So, what was it about then?"

I shrugged as I stirred my cereal around, watching the flakes submerge. "It was the usual one. About my last day at Lyle House and... the boy who gave me the puzzle piece."

My dad bit into his toast and chewed thoughtfully. When he said nothing, I hurried on. "I couldn't help thinking about where he is and whether or not he's still looking for me. If he even remembers his promise," I admitted.

My dad lowered his toast slowly as he looked at me, conflict in his expression. I knew what he was going to say before he said it. As much as he didn't want to ruin anything for me, he didn't believe that a thirteen year old promise between two young children could come true. "Chloe-" he started, uncertainty colouring his tone.

"-I know," I cut him off. "I don't think that I'll ever see him again either, but I always have this dream. It's clearer than the others. Is that supposed to mean something?"

It was a rhetorical question. Neither my dad nor I had the answer to it. It could just be that my brain was messing with me. Or maybe, as absurd as it sounded, it was a sign that I should have hope. What I knew for sure was that my life had enough puzzles with missing pieces and I wasn't just referring to my special puzzle piece. My dad ran a hand through his barely-greying hair. "I really don't know," he admitted reluctantly.

A look of disappointment crossed his face. It tugged at my heart that he cared to the point that he was bothered by his inability to decipher my vague dreams. My dad was a man who was capable of doing a lot of things, but even then, he didn't have the answers that I wanted. And that bugged him. I forced a smile. "Hey, it's just a dream. It probably doesn't mean anything. Like Sigmund Freud says, this dream probably occurs a lot because there's a part of me that wishes the promise could come true," I said.

My dad's lips twitched in amusement. "Aren't a lot of his theories wrong?"

"Maybe. But he's still the father of psychoanalysis, meaning that he must have done something right," I said as the DJ reported the time at a break in the classical station. "And I should probably go get prepped. I don't want to be late on my first day as a library assistant."

My dad nodded as he glanced up at the clock for confirmation and drained the last bit of his coffee. "I'll be heading out to the office too. Andrew went for his annual vacation so everyone else has to pull double duty for a while," he said, sighing.

I grinned. "At least you won't have to redo the ones he gets wrong," I pointed out.

My dad smiled as he kissed the top of my head. "True. Well, I gotta run, so I'll see you at dinner. Enjoy your first day," he said as he grabbed his suitcase and the door clicked closed a few seconds later.

I cleared the table and quickly went back upstairs to get my backpack. As I was about to leave my room for the second time, I stopped in the doorway and looked back at my pillow, which hid my puzzle piece. Weird dreams or not, I liked having it with me to serve as my good luck charm and went back to grab it. I slipped it into my wallet, where it would be safe and closed the door behind me.

Just before I left the house, I stopped by the living room, like I have always done before I left for school. My eyes drifted past the well-used furniture to a particular photo sitting on top of the fireplace. It was a picture of my mom.

Looking at her always made my heart ache, especially when she had passed away at such a young age. My parents were out on a date night when it happened. Even though seven years have already passed, I would never forget the feeling I felt when the police told me that my parents were in a car accident. And that my mom hadn't made it.

I had thought it was some sort of sick joke and had yelled at the officers that it wasn't funny. But the way their eyes had looked at me with pity had brought my world crashing down. My mom, the one who kissed my injuries away and filled my life with hugs and warmth, would never come back. All because some guy drank too much before getting behind the wheel.

At school, we had always learned that you shouldn't "drink and drive" because when you did, the risk of getting in an accident or causing one was much higher. I even heard about it all the time on the news, but even then, I had never thought that it would happen to anyone I loved. But it did.

I shook my head sharply, willing the awful memories to fade away. I could grieve as much as I wanted, but it wouldn't bring my mom back. She wouldn't have wanted me or my dad to live in the past either, so we had to keep on going, even if she wasn't physically with us.

I used to wonder if I could find her ghost, but after countless attempts, she was still gone. It seemed unfair to be cursed with this ability to see and contact the dead when I couldn't even use it to find the one person I wanted most. But life wasn't fair. All you could do was to keep on living to the best of your ability.

I took a deep breath and pasted on a smile. "Hey mom," I said softly. "Remember how I wanted to work at the library? Well, today's my first day on the job. I hope I don't screw up." I gave a small laugh. "Anyway, wish me luck. I love you."

I studied the photo for a moment longer and when I was satisfied, I grabbed my keys to my car and locked the house.

A blue Mazda waited for me in the driveway and it purred to life when I turned my keys in the ignition. It was a second hand car complete with scratches and dents, but it was mine. I had spent most of last year saving up my babysitting money to be able to afford it. Like the previous owner had promised, it was a reliable car.

Normally it took about an hour to get to NYU, but I was lucky enough to get the majority of green lights. That usually never happened to me, so today was bound to be a_ great_ day. Forty or so minutes later, I was at Bobst library.

I already had my training session, but Amber, the head library assistant, went over the basics again to make sure that I wasn't going to screw up on her watch. She wasn't the friendliest person, but I had to admire how dedicated she was to the job.

It didn't seem to be too difficult. Mainly checking in and out books and other stuff, shelving materials and doing any other work that needs to be done. In other words, I was pretty much a jack of all trades. I was really eager for this job because I was a first year English major who wanted to be an editor. And what better place to work in than a place full of books?

When Amber gave me a trolley full of books that needed to be shelved, I happily complied. The library had a total of twelve floors so I was infinitely grateful for the invention of the elevator. Embarrassingly enough, I probably spent more time getting lost than doing actual work. Amber's scowl when I returned with the empty trolley said as much. "Sorry, I had gotten lost," I admitted sheepishly.

She gave me a nod as though she had already figured that out. "Fine. But I hope you got it down now," she said.

I didn't- not yet anyway- but I nodded. No reason to make her more annoyed than necessary. "Good. Now, before you're done for your shift, you need to make a delivery. One of the humanities professors has reserved some books and you need to drop them off at his office," Amber said as she handed me a slip of paper with the office location.

I glanced down at the piece of paper. "Dr. Robert Vasic, senior lecturer," I murmured to myself. Then I glanced up at Amber. "What does he teach?"

She frowned at the question, although it seemed more like she was trying to find a way to phrase her answer rather than being irritated. "I'm not actually sure." Her answer was reluctant. "I have never had him as a professor, but he's really well liked. According to the rumours, he teaches demonology."

That was unexpected. I would have guessed something more of religious studies or Latin. "There's a course like _that_ here?"

Amber shrugged as she reached for a stack of books. "I guess so, but like I said, I don't know him well. I could be wrong." Although her words were modest, her tone implied that she didn't think she was ever wrong. "Anyway, these are the novels he requested. His office hours end at 10, so I'd walk fast if I were you," she said, handing me the stack.

I took it and glanced at my watch. I held back a curse; I had less than fifteen minutes to find his office and make my delivery. "Okay, thanks. See you tomorrow," I said quickly as I grabbed my bag and left the library.

As I power walked from the library to the main university building, I couldn't help but glance down at the books that I was carrying. The topmost novel was titled, _Life in Netherworld: A Guide to Demon History and Lore_. I blinked hard and re-read the the words to make sure that I wasn't imagining it. Sure, there were a bunch of books out there that claimed to know everything about demons, but this qualified as an actual textbook. I was still trying to wrap my head around that there was actually a class on demonology. _You talk to ghosts no one else can see and you think that it's _weird_ that a demonology class exists?_ My inner voice chastised. Good point. I gave my head a sharp shake and continue to walk quickly. Another glance at my watch said that I only had ten minutes left.

_Crap. _It wouldn't do me any favours if this Dr. Robert Vasic guy had a short temper and decided to use me for his next demonic sacrifice for being late. Or simply report back to Amber. I didn't know which was worse, but if I had it my way, I would never know.

I picked up my pace, almost jogging down the halls with a bundle of books wobbling in my hands. I weaved in and out of the stream of students who moved infuriatingly slow in the hallway. I glanced down at the slip of paper again and mentally mapped the faculty departments. English was to the right. Psychology was a floor below. That meant that humanities was just around the corner.

I sped up as I rounded the bend and... slammed into a solid chunk of flesh. The air was driven from my lungs as I rebounded off whatever I had crashed into. I landed harshly on the ground with an _oompf_ and blinding pain soared up my tailbone. I couldn't see anything for a second, but I heard my books falling around me.

Then I heard a low rumble.

"What the hell?"

The voice was male and sounded indignant. I blinked rapidly, trying to rid my tears from the pain. Then I looked up.

And up.

And up once more.

My gaze drifted past a chin, a pair of lips, a nose and finally stared at the stranger's eyes. He stared back, the intensity of his emerald irises making me cringe. He was pissed.

_Really_ pissed.

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**A/N: I bet you can guess who that person in the end is. I decided to let Chloe attend NYU, though I've never actually been there. I chose it because it's located in New York and the Darkest Powers series took place in Buffalo, so it wouldn't be too far of a stretch to say something later on that was located in Buffalo that concerned Chloe's past. No promises though. Anyway, please don't hate me if I get some details wrong about the university. All I can do is do a bit of research online. I'm not too sure about the differences between campus types in America and Canada (because I'm Canadian and I attend a Canadian university), so please forgive me again if I wrote something that is completely off. I hope you liked this chapter and please look forward to the next one!  
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**PS. Forgot to mention: Feel free to follow me on twitter if you like to see my progress for each chapter as I write them. There's a link on my profile. AND I'll be on vacation in Malaysia for most of May, so I might be slow in replying to any questions/reviews. I'll try to post something every week, but no guarantees.  
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**-posted: May 4, 2013  
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	3. Ghosts, Demons and Werewolves

**A/N: Hey guys! Thanks so much for your reviews on the last chapter. I was rather amused by how many of you wanted Chloe's puzzle piece to fall out. Definitely a possibility, but I have something else in mind for the great puzzle piece revelation, so I'll be saving that idea until later into the fanfic. I apologize for the long wait. I ended up with less time to write than I had originally thought. It didn't help that the internet was down for the past few days. Well, I'm back from my trip in Malaysia and it was a lot of fun! But now, it's back to my usual life. I will definitely have more time to write with only one class this semester, so I'll work hard to update more frequently. Anyway, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Darkest Powers**

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**Chapter 2: Ghosts, Demons and Werewolves**

"I'm sorry!" I blurted out as the tall stranger scowled further, if that was even possible.

His face was very ordinary with fading pocks and acne scars from not too long ago, as though Mother Nature had been cruel to him. His hair was as dark as midnight and his bangs hung in his face. It didn't seem as though he was going for the emo look but rather the fact that he probably hadn't bothered to get a haircut in a while. But what stood out the most were his eyes. They were the richest shade of green I had ever seen for eye colour. Green as intense of that of cut emerald and I found myself staring.

_Such a beautiful colour. They contrast sharply with his dark hair. It's too bad his eyes are hidden underneath that curtain of h-_ "Woah," a different male voice cut in, interrupting my train of thought. "What happened?"

I turned my head in the direction of the voice and saw a dark blond head pop out from behind the giant. The other boy was about half a foot shorter than his tall friend and had a kind face. He was Asian and his brown eyes looked at me in concern. "Are you okay?" he asked as he scanned for any visible injuries.

My cheeks reddened as I realized that I was still on the floor. I was vaguely aware of the passersby staring at the scattered books around me. I quickly got to my feet. "Y-yeah. I'm fine," I stammered, as I started to reach for the closest book.

The shorter boy got to it first and handed it to me. "Good," he said with a quick grin as his gaze dropped to the title of the book and his brows rose. "What class is _that_ for?"

I looked down at the book in my hands and blushed. It read, _Virginal Sacrifices for Demon Lords and How to Conduct Them._ "I'm not sure. I'm only dropping them off for a professor," I answered.

The Asian guy looked as though he wanted to say something else but his taller companion made an impatient noise. "We done here?" he grumbled as he stuck his hands into his pockets.

His friend rolled his eyes. "Aren't you going to help her pick up the rest of her books?"

I was looking around for the last one when the other guy replied with, "Why should I? _She _ran into me. If she had been more careful, her books wouldn't have needed to be picked up."

My gaze darted back to him and saw that he was still scowling at me. My brows knitted together as I frowned. What a rude jerk_._ I didn't need his help, but he didn't have to be an ass about it. Sure, I bumped into him but most guys would have probably laughed it off as an accident.

Apparently, not _this_ guy.

A sigh from the shorter boy as he waved his friend ahead. "You go on. I'll catch up in a sec," he said as he turned to me with a sheepish smile. "Sorry about my brother. I'm still teaching him manners."

I blinked. _Brother?_ There was no way they were blood related considering how different they looked. The guy saw my confusion and his smile turned natural. "_Foster_ brother," he clarified as his gaze darted past me. "Ah, there's the last book. Here you go."

I took it and returned his smile. "Thanks. And it's okay. It was my fault for being in a hurry," I replied as I glanced up at the nearby clock. "Speaking of which, I should _really_ drop these off before office hours end."

He nodded. "Gotcha. Well see you around then. Be careful not to run into any more people," he teased as he looked back at me.

I rolled my eyes. "I won't." And with that, I hurried on to my destination.

By the time I located Robert Vasic's office, I was cutting it pretty close for time. Not used to anything other than a leisurely stroll, I was slightly out of breath when I knocked on the closed door. A reply came a few seconds later. "Come in."

I shifted my hold on the books and entered the room. Then I stopped short. The first thing I saw wasn't the professor himself but rather the particular way he chose to decorate the room. In one corner sat an ancient lamp that looked as though it had belonged to an antique store. The faint smell of incense wafted through the air from a bundle of herbs smoking on his desk. There were countless books arranged neatly on the bookshelves but from a quick scan, they all had bizarre titles, some not even in English. An assortment of random objects and symbols were scattered around the room and I had to do some crafty manoeuvring to avoid stepping on a bundle of mini statues that resembled gargoyles.

The professor had his back to me but at the sound of my entrance, he turned and greeted me with a smile as he reached for his suitcase. He was a lean grandfatherly old man with a balding head and a white bushy moustache. His glasses were perched on top of his head and his icy blue eyes crinkled with warmth at the sight of me. "Hello there, what can I do for you?" he asked as he placed his suitcase on his desk with a soft _thump_.

I eyed the weird Japanese mask hanging off his cabinet behind him before my gaze returned to his face and smiled nervously at him."Hi, I work at the library and I was told that you had requested these books," I said, nodding at the stack in my hands.

The professor's gaze dropped to the bundle in my handle and his eyes widened in recognition. "Oh yes, that's right. I'll take them from you now," he said as I handed the stack over to him. "You had to carry these quite a long way. Thank you, Miss-?"

"Saunders," I answered quickly. "But just call me Chloe."

"Thank you, _Chloe,"_ he clarified as he squinted down at the books and frowned. "I don't quite remember which ones I got and I seemed to have misplaced my reading glasses."

I bit back a smile. "Your glasses are on top of your head, sir."

His hand shot up and blindly felt around until his hand knocked his glasses off. I raced forward to catch them before they fell. Robert Vasic let out a soft chuckle as he thanked me again. "Ah, I'm getting old if I'm starting to lose my memory. I am, as the students like to say, quite absent-minded. But let's take a look at these books."

He pushed his glasses up his nose and peered down at the books, shifting through them. "Now I remember. I was doing some research on the first demon-human encounter when two of my resources had conflicting ideas," he said. "One of them argued that it was a demon who escaped the Netherworld and took interest in the human realm whereas the other said that it was a human who conducted a ritual in hopes of contacting-"

I didn't quite know what to say so I nodded along to his words. Even if I didn't know much about his field of study, Robert Vasic seemed really eager about his work with the way his entire face lit up, making him look a decade younger. The professor glanced at my blank expression and smiled albeit bashfully. "-and I'm getting carried away, aren't I?" he continued. Then he looked at me. "Do you believe in the supernatural, Chloe?"

I blinked as my gaze flickered to the burning incense. Seeing the wisps of smoke dancing in the air reminded me of what most people thought ghosts looked like. But they were wrong; ghosts looked exactly like the people they used to be.

For as long as I could remember, I have always had the ability to see ghosts, even if I didn't know until later that that was what they really were. When I was younger, I thought they were just regular people who talked to me. Some of them were nice. The others weren't. Like everyone at Lyle House, no one could see the ghosts except for me. My parents pretended to be able to see my "imaginary friends" to please me, such as inviting them over for dinner or letting them sleep over. I appreciated that, but as I got older, it bothered me that I was so different from them.

The kids at school were the worst. They weren't afraid to point out my peculiarities and made fun of me. It didn't help that the ghosts told me things that I wouldn't have known otherwise about my classmates. Such as knowing that one of the boys had tortured his cat until the poor creature died and said that it was his neighbour who had done it. When I told the boy that I knew the truth, I couldn't forget the flicker of fear in his eyes before anger settled in. Being one of the biggest kids in the class, he had no shortage of friends and I was bullied relentlessly.

My parents had filed complaints to the school, but it didn't help since the boy and his friends still found ways to hurt me away from the eyes of any adult. Finally, when my mom couldn't stand seeing me covered in bruises any longer, we moved to a new city and a new school to start over.

This time, I learned my lesson; kids didn't like people who were different. It was like having a piece of paper taped to your back that said _kick me. _So I shut up about my ability and pretended to be normal. I stopped talking to the ghosts and they stopped being able to pick me out of a crowd as I got older.

Eventually, I believed that I was normal. Or, as normal as I could be. I still saw ghosts here and there, but I got better at avoiding eye contact and looking through them like most people would. Even though I hated it, I would walk through them sometimes to keep up my facade of being normal.

So did I believe in the supernatural? If ghosts count, then yes, I did. After all, they were everywhere and I was the only one who could see them.

I nodded in reply to Robert Vasic's question. I didn't like to talk about my unique "talent" because no one believed me. But seeing how he was an expert in demonology, I figured that he has had a fair number of people give him the crazy look. It was a look that I knew well. Which is why I figured that letting some of the truth out wouldn't hurt. After all, believing in ghosts isn't that far off from believing in demons. "I guess so. I always think that there are ghosts that walk among us rather than just haunting a single place," I answered.

Robert Vasic nodded slowly, his face growing pensive. I couldn't quite read the whirl of emotion in his icy blue eyes, but I felt that he was studying me with interest. He leaned forward, bracing himself on his elbows. "What about demons, vampires or werewolves?"

I shrugged as I shifted the strap on my bag. "I kind of believe in angels, so I guess I would have to believe in the opposite creature too. As for vampires or werewolves, I find those a little harder to believe."

"How so?"

"I can't really picture a humanoid creature draining their victims of blood. Or a man turning into a beast during every full moon. I mean, it doesn't really sound low profile, does it? Someone would have heard or seen something."

I expected the professor to be a little miffed that I was almost insulting his field of study, but to my surprise, Robert Vasic chuckled. "Good points, Chloe. But like ghosts, supernatural beings could also 'walk among us'. You wouldn't know the difference even if you ran into a werewolf," he said, amusement dancing in his eyes.

I shrugged again, not knowing what to say. Luckily, office hours were up and Robert Vasic straightened, suitcase in hand. "Well, I can't convince you to believe anything I say, but unless I am mistaken, you seem rather intrigued by the supernatural. If you ever feel like it, I strongly recommend you take a class," he said with a wink. "I would be honoured to have you as my student."

I smiled. "I'll consider it. Thank you Dr. Vasic," I replied as we made our way to the door.

The professor grinned. "Call me Robert. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to run to my lecture or else my junior class will be annoyed with my tardiness. Enjoy your day, Chloe," Robert added as he gave me a nod and went on his way.

I still had an hour before my first class of the day so I sent a text to my friend, Rae, telling her to meet me in the cafeteria if she was free. After getting a doughnut and a coffee from the self-service counter, I settled into one of the old comfy sofas and looked up the highest ranking movies of last year on my phone. As I dragged my index finger up the screen, The Hobbit came up and I smiled, thinking of how reluctant Bilbo Baggins was in the beginning to go on an adventure which ended up as one of his greatest. I was more of an epic battle sort of person rather than an epic journey type, but nevertheless, I had enjoyed the movie.

As I thought about the orcs, trolls and other fantastical creatures that Bilbo and the dwarves had faced, I felt that there was a fine line between fantasy and paranormal aspects. There was probably a lot of people who will argue that the two genres were completely different, but it seemed to me that the difference between the two was magic and the type of setting. Fantasy stories seemed to take place in an imaginative realm whereas paranormal aspects generally happened in our everyday world.

As I differentiated between the two, I was reminded of Robert's earlier invitation to take a course on the supernatural. Although I didn't quite believe that something out of a movie, like vampires or werewolves, could possibly be real, the professor wasn't wrong when he said that I seemed interested in that type of thing. A lot of people thought that ghosts only existed in horror stories and ancient myths, but I knew better. So for all I knew, maybe vampires and werewolves existed too.

I typed in my school's course selection URL and began looking up Robert's classes, curious to see if any were open. Usually by the first day of the semester, classes were generally filled up, but occasionally, someone will drop out or realize that they have a schedule conflict. So I scanned the list of classes, looking for any that were open for registration. To my disappointment, they were all full. But I put my name down on the wait list, hoping that someone would change their mind about taking a freshman course.

"There you are."

I looked up to see my friend Rae grinning at me. Her name was actually Rachelle, but she hated being called that. She was a year older than I was, but she was also a freshman because she had taken a year off after high school to work. I had met Rae in the fall semester and we became good friends. I smiled back at her. "Hey. When's your first class?" I asked as she dumped her backpack on the ground and sat in the chair in front of me.

She brushed back a curly strand of dark hair. "Just had it. I swear my crim prof is as old as Dumbledore." She rolled her eyes. "Sure looks like him too."

I laughed. "Hey, I would love to have a professor that looks like him. Makes me one step closer to attending Hogwarts."

Rae raised an eyebrow at me in mock disbelief. "Girl, don't tell me you're still waiting for that acceptance letter," she said as she gave me a onceover. "You're like 9 years too old for that stuff."

"I can always dream, can't I?"

She only smiled in response as she leaned over to see what I was working on. "'Introduction to Mythology' with Dr. Robert Vasic," she read. A pause and then, "Isn't that the guy who teaches demonology?"

I looked at her in surprise. "You know him?" I questioned.

"I've _heard_ of him. Apparently, he's a really good prof. Kinda weird but good," Rae answered. "You planning on taking his class?"

I shrugged. "Might as well. I only signed up for three classes this semester, so taking another wouldn't hurt. I met him this morning when I was running my errands for the library and I'm kind of interested in the material," I replied as I scrolled down the page. "I'm waitlisted though. Same deal for the tutorial session that comes with the class."

Rae snorted as she threw her arms around the back of the chair and leaned back. "No biggie. You'll get in no problem. People drop out like flies. So when's the first class?"

"Today, actually. The tutorial is too."

"Huh, okay then. Let me know how it goes."

We chatted for a bit longer before it was finally time for me to go to my first class. Since I was an English major, I had to take a lot of writing classes, but I liked them better than anything else. I wasn't sure what I was going to take for my mandatory science credit, but I figured that I would deal with that later.

When it was time for Robert's class, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Given that the topic was pretty flexible since it was mainly about imagination and interpretation, I almost assumed that we would see a satanic ritual of some sort. But instead, he gave us a brief introduction about what to expect for the semester and some of the topics that we were going to cover. It was mainly reading articles on the different myths, but each one covered a different creature. There was even one about ghosts and I have to admit that I was curious to see how accurate it was to reality.

Robert was a excellent lecturer. He knew how to capture everyone's attention with the perfect mix of humour and anticipation. By the time the class ended, he dismissed us and everyone crowded at the door, chatting animatedly. As I waited my turn, I looked back and caught the professor's eye. He looked slightly surprised to see me but he gave me a smile and nodded once. I smiled back and exited the classroom.

With the addition of the mythology course, the tutorial that accompanied it was my last class for today. By the time I climbed the set of stairs leading to the fifth floor, most of the students were already gone for the day. It was rare to have a tutorial on the fifth level since the rooms were generally reserved for science majors. So embarrassingly enough, I ended up taking the long way to find the right room.

The numbers on the walls crawled by as my eyes darted from side to side, looking for the right one. Finally, I stopped in front of room 5040. The door was closed and I gingerly opened it, not sure if the previous class had already vacated it. The professors and teacher assistants did their best to let us out on time, but occasionally, they would go over, leaving those with back-to-back classes scrambling from one lecture hall to another.

When I didn't hear anything, I peered inside to see that it was empty. I frowned; it was five minutes until the tutorial started. Normally by now, people would have already been hanging around, waiting for the class to start.

I stepped outside and pulled out my schedule, making sure I had the correct time and place. They were both right. So where was everyone? Robert was announced earlier that the tutorials were mandatory because we received participation credit from attending them, meaning that most people wouldn't dare skip the extra lessons.

As I glanced nervously down the hall, a thought came to me. What if the TA had changed the room at the last minute and notified everyone by email? I stood in the doorway pondering about this possibility when a large shadow fell in front of me.

Before I could react, a low voice rumbled, "You're in my way."

With my heart jump-started, I spun so quickly that it took a moment for my brain to catch up. When it did, I found myself staring at a familiar pair of brilliant green eyes.

It was the same guy from this morning.

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**A/N: Not quite Chloe's day is it? So much for her lucky puzzle piece... or so she thinks. Some of you asked if Derek recognized her when they collided and the answer is no. Since they were both really young when they lived together, they don't have too many memories of each other except for the more important ones. So in this case, it is termed "Childhood Amnesia".  
**

**As for the questions regarding the familiarity of Chloe's scent, Derek's brain vaguely recognizes it, but he can't place where he had smelled it. For all he knows, he could have remembered it from one of the many scents lingering in the school hallways, which is highly likely. So in other words, Derek classifies this faint feeling of recognition as "insignificant".**

**There wasn't a lot of Derek here, but I generally don't like giving him too much of a spotlight right away unless Chloe already knew him. But don't worry, he'll have some bigger parts soon. Lastly, I just wanted to note that yes, Robert Vasic here is the same one in Kelley's Otherworld series. I don't intend on making this a crossover but more of occasionally adding references that indicate that characters from both series live in the same world. So Robert has a part in this fanfic, kind of like the way Sean did in The Rising. Anyway, hope you'll look forward to the next one!**

**-posted: May 28, 2013**


	4. And It Gets Worse

**A/N: Hey everyone! Thanks for the great responses on the last chapter. Not a whole lot happens in this chapter but it was quite a lot of fun to write it. I hope you'll like it!**

**Disclaimer: I don't and will never own Darkest Powers (unfortunately)**

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**Chapter 3: And It Gets Worse...**

I stared up at the guy as he scowled. "Are you deaf?" he growled as he glared at me. "I want you to move."

I blinked, snapping back to reality at his words. Normally, I would stumble and stammer my apologies, but this wasn't the first time we crossed paths. He wasn't any nicer than this morning either. Then I felt my anger bubbling up. Just who was this jerk? "Could you be any ruder? Most people would say 'excuse me', not 'you're in my way', when they want someone to move," I snapped.

The giant looked slightly taken back but his surprised look disappeared so fast that I thought I had imagined it. Then he pinned me with a fierce scowl. With his incredible bulk and intimidating air, it took everything I had not to shrink away.

"Sure whatever. If that will make you move."

"Then say it," I commanded.

Anger flashed in his eyes like green fire and part of me mentally screamed at myself for being stupid. He was twice my size and his shoulders were as wide as the doorway. If he wanted to, he could easily crush me. But I held my ground. My dad had always told me to stand up to the bullies and not let them think that you were afraid. If you didn't, then they would think that they could push you around. "Well?" I prompted after a moment of silence.

The guy looked at me, sizing me up. Then he snorted dismissively, as though I was wasting his time. "Fine. Excuse me, will you _please_ move?" he said in a mocking tone that made me bristle.

Apparently, he wasn't taking me seriously. After all, compared to him, I was a tiny little thing. Barely over 5 feet tall. There was nothing stopping him from shoving me out of the doorway and he knew that I knew. I only hoped the neanderthal was civilized enough not to do it. I swallowed my anger and pasted on an innocent look. Two could play at this game. I batted my eyelashes as I looked up at him. "Oh, I'm _so_ sorry. I didn't realize that _I_ was blocking _your_ way," I said in the same mocking tone he had directed towards me.

The giant's eyes narrowed at me as I smiled and stepped out of his way. He stared at me for a moment before shoving his hands into his pockets. My heart thumped loudly against my chest as he walked past me and made it to the far side of the room before sitting down. Once I was sure that I wasn't in any danger, I slowly slid in after him and took my seat as far from him as possible.

After a few minutes of uncomfortable silence, I took out my phone and pretended to be busy while I snuck looks at him across the room. He was slouched in his seat and his eyes were closed, so still that I thought he had fallen asleep. I frowned as I glanced at the clock. It was time for the tutorial to start, but there wasn't anyone here.

Only me.

And this jerk.

Who happened to be in my tutorial. Now I'll see him twice a week for tutorials and three times more for lectures. _Just great_. I scowled at him.

At that moment, his eyes snapped open and our gaze met. Startled, I looked away quickly, my cheeks flaming at the fact that I had been caught staring. I could feel the giant's eyes on me, but I refused to look up and see that piercing look. So, I made myself focus on my phone as I pulled up the browser to check this week's box office.

In my peripheral vision, I saw an option to sign up for their newsletter, which promised to send me weekly updates about the newest movies and promotions. Without hesitating, I entered my email address into the slot and was prompted to verify the information in the confirmation email. As my inbox loaded, my eyes snagged on an unread message with the subject line, _Humanities 105 Tutorial Room Change._ My mind froze as I gave the email a quick read through, confirming my earlier thoughts that the TA had indeed decided to change rooms at the last minute. Well, not exactly last minute, considering she had sent out the email this morning, but I hadn't bothered to check until now.

I let out a small curse under my breath when I saw the new room number and didn't recognize the location. Again, I felt a pair of eyes on me and glanced up to see the jerk looking at me with an unreadable expression. My gaze dropped to my phone and I bit my lip. The jerk didn't know that the room had been changed either, but I didn't owe him any favours. It would serve him right if he wasted the next hour waiting for a tutorial that wouldn't happen. But at the same time, it wasn't like me to do that to someone, even if he had been nothing but an ass.

Hoping that I wouldn't regret my decision, I grabbed my backpack and stood up. "Hey you!" I said as emerald eyes lazily glanced in my direction, the rest of him was unmoved. "Got an email from our TA saying that the room has been changed."

He frowned as he studied me, evidently looking for any traces of a lie. I gritted my teeth as I gave him an icy look. "Believe it or not, I'm telling the truth. I don't care if you're gonna stay here, but I'm definitely not."

I was halfway out the door when I heard the scraping sounds of a chair being pushed back and footsteps that followed afterwards. He fell into pace with me, though I knew that it wasn't like he wanted my company or anything. Quite the opposite. "Where's the room?" he grumbled.

I shrugged as we headed towards the staircase. I motioned to my phone. "No idea. I'm not too familiar with-" I stopped as the giant snatched the phone out of my hands. "-hey!"

He glanced at the message and tossed my phone back to me. I scrambled forward to catch it before it hit the ground. "Hey!" I yelled again, but the jerk ignored me as he quickened his pace with a destination in mind.

With his longer legs and quicker stride, I had to nearly jog to keep up with him. Luckily, the hallways were pretty dead by now so I didn't have to worry about losing him. Besides, the guy was tall enough that he would have towered over most people.

We went down five floors and rounded the corner until we exited the main building. I came to a stop beside him as we waited for the lights to change. I breathed rapidly as my heart pounded against my rib cage, protesting at the unexpected exertion. The jerk beside me noticed my panting and rolled his eyes, as though he was exasperated by my lack of physical activity. I shot a glare at him. "What?" I snapped, when I regained my breath. "You could have walked slower."

He gave me a look that plainly said, _"And tell me why I would do that?_" However, it could have been just my imagination, but for the rest of the way, I could have sworn that he had slowed down by a fraction, making it easier for me to keep up.

By the time we reached the next building and the right room, it was nearly 20 minutes since the tutorial began. I hovered outside the closed door, my arm raised to knock, but then I hesitated. A class was already in there, _my _class to be exact, but I was already this late. Maybe it would better to skip the tutorial and then email the TA afterwards saying that I didn't receive the email in time, which was partly true. But at the same time, I wasn't the type of person to skip a tutorial, never mind one that was actually mandatory. As I stood there debating about what I should do, the guy behind me stepped forward. "Oh, for crying out loud," he muttered under his breath as he pounded the door, making it rattle underneath his fist.

The indiscernible murmuring inside the room ceased at knock and I heard the scraping of a chair. A few seconds later, the door clicked open and we were greeted by a girl who was a few years older than we were. She had short blond hair, a turned up nose and a sharp chin as well as large black hipster glasses paired with a semi-casual outfit. She looked slightly confused to see us, but nevertheless gave us a small smile. "Can I help you?"

"Is this the t-tutorial for Humanities 105?" I stammered.

The girl's smile widened into a grin. "Yup! I'm Gwen, your TA for the class," she greeted as her expression turned slightly sheepish. "You guys must have been confused by the room change, huh?"

I shrugged as if it was no big deal. The giant beside me had been silent since the door opened, so I stepped in, answering her question. "Just a little bit."

"Well, come on in. I need your guys' names so I can mark you down for attendance."

We entered the classroom and I saw that it was very similar to the other tutorial room we had been in. There were three long rows of tables with someone at every spot. The only places that were empty were in the back corner, near the windows. Gwen returned to her desk in front of the class and we followed her as everyone's attention was on us. She flipped open her notebook to reveal a list of names and looked up at me expectantly. "Chloe," I said. "Chloe Saunders."

Gwen's gaze returned to her book as she scanned the list, frowning when she didn't see mine. "I'm on the waitlist," I said quickly.

"Ah, that'll probably be why your name isn't here. But that's okay. I'll add it on the side," said Gwen as she looked at the guy behind me. "And yours?"

"Derek Souza."

So the jerk has a name. At least I could stop calling him "_the guy_". There was a moment of silence as Gwen dragged her finger down the page. Then Derek mumbled something indiscernible under his breath. Gwen blinked as she looked up at him. "Sorry, could you repeat that?" she asked with an apologetic smile.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that he wore the same scowl he had on earlier. "I _said_ that I'm also on the waitlist," he grumbled.

"Oh okay. No problem. There usually isn't an administration problem with Robert's class, so you guys should be able to get in by next week at the latest. For now, please find a seat."

I gave the classroom another quick scan and my heart sunk. The only empty seats were the two next to each other and there weren't any other ones. That meant that I had to sit next to Derek-the-Jerk. Resignedly, I made my way over and plunked myself down onto the chair. _Look on the bright side, Chloe. At least you don't need to sit next to him for too long. Only need to endure it for another 25 minutes before class ends. _I sighed as Derek slipped into the seat next to me. I made a vow to arrive earlier next time to get a better spot. That and to avoid sitting next to him.

Gwen looked around the classroom before her gaze settled on Derek and me. "You guys didn't miss much but before you arrived, but I went over some of the details on the term project and the partner work that's involved," she said as I stared at her, a bad feeling settling in my stomach.

There was a term _partner_ project? Who was going to be my partner? _Oh please don't tell me that you've already assigned partners. _I prayed silently as my heart pounded loudly in my ear, listening attentively for her next words. Gwen gave us an apologetic look. "Well, I think everyone has already paired up, leaving you two. I hope it's okay if I ask you guys to be partners," she said. "I mean, you guys seem to already know each other."

I blinked as my mind processed her words. Everyone had already paired up? Meaning that I was partnered with _this_ guy?

My head whipped to the side to see Derek looking out the window with a bored expression. I couldn't even tell if he had even been listening to the conversation, much less than knowing my inner turmoil. He had been nothing but a rude jerk to me since I had accidentally crashed into him this morning. How was I supposed to stand working with him?

I considered protesting Gwen's decision, but I faltered when I saw how hopeful she looked. That and how Derek thought I was a complete bimbo. I didn't need to prove his theories right by chickening out on a partner project. So what if I was stuck with him for the next three and a half months? I could handle it. He may be an ass, but I'll teach him that I'm not the type of person that will let him push me around.

With my mind made up, I agreed to Gwen's proposition.

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**A/N: Derek's a total charmer, isn't he? Poor Chloe, her day just goes from bad to worse. Part of the next chapter will be fun too, though I haven't quite planned out everything for it just yet. Hope you liked this chapter and please look forward to the next one.  
**

**-posted June 7, 2013**


	5. A Snowy Memory

**A/N: Hey guys! Thanks for all of your support on the last chapter! Summer semester's been pretty slow without a whole lot to do, so I was glad that I was able to get this done rather quickly. This is the longest chapter yet, so I hope you'll enjoy it!  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Darkest Powers**

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**Chapter 4: A Snowy Memory**

"So now that we've gotten through most of the general important details for the class, I wanted to take the time to let you guys get used to the course material," Gwen said, holding up a heavily-tabbed textbook.

_Uh oh. I totally forgot to check to see what I needed for the class when I signed up this morning. _My heart thudded loudly against my rib cage as everyone around me pulled out their copies. Some of the textbooks were still in their shrink wrapped packages, but at least they were there. Heck, even Derek had one and from a quick scan, he had also taken the time to add some tabs. For what, I had no idea, considering that today was the first class, but I guess he wasn't the sort of person to be unprepared. Not like me. I swallowed thickly as I raised my hand. "Um, I didn't know that we would be needing them today, so uh, I don't have mine yet," I said, feeling my face flame when every eye looked at me.

Beside me, I heard a snort and it took some constraint not to shoot Derek the death glare. Even though I wasn't looking at him, I could guess what he was thinking. With my mistake, I had probably confirmed his opinion that I wasn't much smarter than plankton. Gwen smiled. "That's okay. We won't be doing a whole lot with it today, just reading a bit of the first story." She looked down at her battered copy and her expression turned bashful. "I'd lend you mine, but I need it to follow along as well."

Then when her eyes drifted over to Derek, I knew what she was going to say before the words slipped out of her mouth. "Derek, would you mind sharing with Chloe? Just for today?" Gwen asked as my neighbour turned slowly to look at me.

I tried not to wince at the icy expression on his face. It was cold enough to keep the polar ice caps from melting. Suddenly, I was almost tempted to say that it was okay, that I could share with someone else. _Anyone_ else. But reluctantly, Derek slid the book in the space between the two of us, giving me no chance of escaping. "Thanks," I mumbled but he ignored me as he looked out the window again.

I glanced down at the course textbook entitled, The Mythical Creatures Bible: The Definitive Guide to Legendary Beings. The illustrations in the front cover contained various monsters and hybrids of animals, all drawn with extraordinary detail by the human imagination. If it wasn't so thick that it could have doubled as a weapon, I would have thought that it was a children's book.

After Gwen gave us the go-ahead, I flipped open the cover and looked at the table of contents. Inside was a list of creatures as well as a myth after each introduction. The first one on the list was an entry on something called a "futakuchi-onna". Mildly intrigued, I read the brief profile on the creature, who was Japanese monster that took on the form of a woman with two mouths.

Her normal mouth was located on her face and her second mouth was found on the back of her head, concealed under a curtain of hair. Depending on the story, there were different variations as to how the woman came into possession of her second mouth. But what the myths all had in common was that the monster's hair acted like tentacles and fed the host with whatever it could grab. Including furniture, food and human flesh.

I stared at the picture where a woman sat in front of a mirror, looking perfectly normal in her kimono. That is, until I got to the gaping mouth armed with razor sharp teeth and a repulsive tongue on the back of her head. It was a horrifying illustration, but fascinating one at the same time too. "Are you done looking?" an impatient voice grumbled to my left. "Turn the damn page."

"R-right. Sorry."

I quickly flipped to the next page, containing a myth on the futakuchi-onna. In this variation, the author had chosen to describe the woman as a selfish mother who starved her step-child to death to keep her own offspring fed. The step-child became a vengeful spirit who implanted himself into his stepmother's body, turning her into a monster.

When I finished, I closed the book and exhaled deeply, trying to get the grotesque image out of my head. "That's really messed up," I said as Derek juggled the pen between his fingers, looking bored.

"Serves her right," he replied, monotonously.

I shrugged as other groups began their own discussions, their voices unintelligible. "I guess so, but still pretty creepy," I added. "But now we know the moral of the story: Don't be a bitchy stepmother. Nothing good ever happens to them."

The pen slipped out of Derek's fingers and clattered loudly onto the desk. I glanced sharply at my neighbour as he reached for it. His lips twitched in something that looked suspiciously like a smile, but it faded as quickly as it had come. By the time he picked the pen up, his face returned to neutral, making me doubt what I had seen.

When the tutorial ended and everyone was packing up, Gwen asked Derek and me to stay after class to give us the details on the partner project that we had missed. It sounded simple enough; all we had to do was create a fifteen-page legend based on any mythical creature discussed in the course outline. However, it was heavily weighted at 35% of our grade, meaning that it wasn't something to take lightly.

"You guys have the whole semester to work on it, but I would definitely advise that you start as soon as you can," said Gwen. "I've had way too many people work on it at the last minute, turning in utter crap. So I expect something better from you two, okay?"

I nodded. "Got it."

She dismissed us shortly after and I quickly gathered up my stuff. Although Derek was the last person I wanted to work with, I didn't really have a choice in the matter. Which meant that I needed to arrange a time when the two of us were free to work together. However, when I looked up, the guy was already gone. I grabbed the handle of my backpack and rushed into the hall just in time to catch a glimpse of him heading into the stairwell at the end of the hall. "Hey wait!" I called out, but the glass door was already closing.

I bit back a groan as I hurried after him, hastily slipping my arms through the bag's straps. I flew down two flights of stairs to arrive at the ground floor, where we had passed a small coffee shop earlier. There, I saw Derek's hulking figure as he spoke to someone seated at one of the tables. With my heart pounding slightly from both the exertion and the idea of what I was about to do, I took a deep breath and marched up to the guy.

Before I could utter his name, Derek suddenly turned as though he had sensed my presence. "Now what do you want?" he rumbled, a scowl sliding into place.

I stopped short as another pair of eyes glanced at me. I looked over at the guy who stopped in the midst of collecting his papers and recognized him from this morning. After the initial moment of surprise, he blinked once and the look of recollection dawned on his face. Evidently, he remembered me too.

"Well?" Derek prompted again when I didn't answer him right away.

I wiped my sweaty palms on the sides of my jeans and brought out my phone. "As your partner, I need your number so we can get together and work on the project," I said, looking him in the eye.

The impassive expression on Derek's face didn't change. Either he didn't hear a word that I had just said or he didn't care. My bet was on the latter. And that ticked me off. "Okay, I know we got off on the wrong start, but I really want to do well on this. I'm sure you do too. So that means we need to work together," I insisted, trying to keep my annoyance in check. "So _please_ cooperate with me."

Derek studied me with those eerily green eyes of his as though he was seeing into my inner soul. I tried not to squirm and instead, focused on staring right back at him. Challenging him to turn down my request.

After a long moment, Derek smirked and crossed his arms. From the way he looked down at me, it was evident that he thought he was just humouring me and I had to bite my tongue to stop myself from saying something that I would regret. "Fine. Let's exchange numbers, _partner_," he replied.

Although his words were fine, his tone made me bristle. It was as if he thought I was the type of person who did absolutely nothing on partner projects and still claimed credit for it. In other words, he thought that I was useless and only agreed to get me off his back.

Well, he was going to be so wrong.

We exchanged phones and I typed in my contact information before returning his. "Send me your availability and we'll work something out," I said. "In the meantime, skim through the textbook and see if there's anything you want to do in particular."

"Sure whatever. You're done here, right?"

I swallowed my impulse to throttle him and exhaled deeply, pasting on my best smile. Working with Derek was definitely going to push my patience to its limits. "Yup. See you in lecture, Derek," I replied with forced enthusiasm.

Derek scoffed as he turned to leave. The other boy, Derek's brother, scrambled up, shoving his papers into his backpack. "Meet you at the car, bro. I'll just be a sec," he said as Derek gave him a look.

The guy returned his look with one of his own and Derek rolled his eyes before leaving. We watched his hulking figure step out of the building and disappear from view as he turned a corner. Derek's brother turned to me with a grin. "Didn't get a chance to introduce myself earlier. I'm Simon," he said, extending his hand.

His smile was contagious and I smiled back at him, despite my dislike for his brother. I shook his hand. "I'm Chloe. It's nice to meet you."

A small laugh. "Ditto. I wish I could say the same for Derek, but I'd be lying. He doesn't-" Simon struggled for a word.

"-like me?" I supplied helpfully. "I know."

Simon shook his head. "Nah, it's not you. _Really_," he added when he saw that I wasn't convinced. "Derek's just not a people-person. Shocker, I know. But anyway, judging from your conversation, I heard that you guys are partners, right?"

I nodded. "For mythology class with Robert Vasic."

"Right. Well, Derek doesn't look it, but he's pretty interested in that type of thing. So hopefully, he won't be too hard to deal with."

I couldn't really see Derek liking a class based on theories and imagination since he seemed more of the down-to-earth type but I smiled. Simon was a lot nicer than his brother. "We'll see."

"He's probably waiting impatiently so I gotta run before I get the 'look'," said Simon as he glanced in the direction Derek had left. "But if he gives you any trouble, let me know. I'll knock some sense into him."

I thanked him and he gave me another quick grin before he left. Although it was nice of Simon to offer help regarding his brother, I didn't think that I would bother him with something as trivial as Derek. For the most part, I tried to take care of my problems on my own and Derek wasn't going to be an exception.

I took the long way to where I had parked my car, stopping at a convenience store to buy a bouquet of flowers. Considering that it was January, there wasn't a lot of variety, but after a moment's hesitation, I picked up a bundle of daisies. Then I made an extra stop to one of the farthest parking lots before heading home.

By this time in the late afternoon, the lot was mainly empty except for a few cars, probably belonging to students who had night classes. I parked my car close to the edge and made my way downhill, the snow crunching beneath my boots. Dim lights overhead illuminated the roads and it was silent with the exception of the wind whistling softly around me. It was an eerie place and usually everyone chose to park elsewhere, unless they were among the unlucky few who had no choice in the matter. Hardly anyone ever came here because of the accident that had taken place nearly four years ago.

A pair of girls had attended a party that was hosted in one of the nearby dormitories. As the night passed, most of the students had indulged in varying amounts of alcohol, celebrating the new year. The girls weren't an exception. However, once the party ended and everyone left, the pair of best friends got into their car and drove.

At first, it was harmless enough, but it was dark and the driver wasn't in any shape to drive. The reckless speed and alcohol became a factor in the accident that happened shortly afterwards. The two girls were on the way home, but in the crash that followed, only one had made it out alive. The car had gone off the roads and wrapped itself around a tree, killing the girl who was in the shot gun seat. Even now, there were still black tire streaks on the asphalt that kept the memory of that night alive.

I walked for about five minutes on the side of the road until I came upon a familiar grave marker. In the fading light, it was easy to miss it, but I had gone by this road often enough to know it by heart. The snow had made a small blanket over the wilted flowers and gifts and I gently brushed it away. Without needing to read the marker, I knew that it said, "Elizabeth Delaney, beloved daughter and friend." She wasn't much older than I was when she died and her cause of death was so similar to my mother's that I felt a connection with this girl.

I bent down and placed my bouquet next to a photo of her, where she was smiling and looking very much alive. The girl had had a whole life ahead of her, but it was taken away too soon. She could have graduated, got a job and perhaps started a family if she wanted to, but now she would never get that chance.

All because of a tragic accident based on bad decisions.

I started to wonder about her visitors when a voice suddenly interrupted my thoughts. "Thanks, Chloe," came a soft feminine voice.

I jumped a little at the sound that seemingly came out of nowhere, but my heart beat slowed from its rapid pace when I looked up to see Elizabeth -Liz, as she had liked to be called- smiling at me. Her ghost form looked exactly like the girl she had been when she was alive. The difference now was that I was the only one who could see her.

Normally, I tried to keep my ability a secret from both people and ghosts alike, but every now and then, I slipped up. Sometimes I would stare too long and when ghosts noticed my attention, my gaze would drop as a result of being caught.

And that was a dead giveaway that I could see them.

Whenever that happened, the ghosts would follow me around, screaming for my attention until I gave in. Sometimes they demanded for justice, unhappy with their state of limbo. Other times, they wanted a favour, such as contacting a loved one.

When I was younger, I tried to help those that I could, but then word spread out in the ghost world that I was willing to help and then... well, things got pretty ugly. Ghosts arrived from every corner of the world with demands of their own until I couldn't take it and begged my parents to move again.

From then on, I learned my lesson: Don't interact with ghosts because they will haunt you. Literally.

But Liz was different. When she figured out that I wasn't a normal college student, she didn't throw demands left and right, like the others had done. Instead, she only talked to me when I was alone, as if she knew that I wouldn't have liked to be seen talking to myself. Even then, she didn't ask me to do anything.

As a ghost, Liz didn't get to have a lot of interaction with other people, so she was alone for most of her afterlife. During last fall, which had been my first semester here, I met her when she was wandering aimlessly on school grounds and eventually we became friends.

I straightened and smiled. "Hi Liz, how's it going?" I questioned.

There wasn't a lot of excitement in the afterlife, but Liz spent her time living campus life, without actually being alive. She sat on her grave marker and swung her legs, grinning. "Not bad. Resident life is entertaining as usual. One of the dorm heads caught a girl sneaking her boyfriend into the Girls Only dorm and it was pretty funny seeing a half naked guy running as fast as he could while trying to hold his pants up," she said. "Not to mention how big the audience was when word got out."

I laughed. "Actually, I think I heard about that in the hallway today, though I didn't really pay too much attention to it until now."

"So, how was your winter break? Did you and your dad get a chance to visit your grandparents?"

"Yeah we did, but oh man, the family gathering was ridiculous..."

And so, I spent the next half hour chatting away with my ghostly friend about the most random things until my teeth chattered from the cold. Liz was sad to see me go, but she wished me a safe trip home and I promised her that I would return soon.

The drive home was fairly peaceful with soft jazz music playing from my radio. The traffic was light at this hour and my mood had improved from talking to Liz. She was a good listener and I appreciated it. There were some things that I couldn't tell anyone else, like my ability to see and talk to ghosts, but I never had to pretend with Liz.

When I came to a red light at a residential neighbourhood, something caught my attention and I glanced out the window to see a young girl running out of the house. The light spilled onto the snow from the open doorway behind her and a woman, presumably the girl's mother, called after her, holding up a small jacket. The girl ignored her and ran into the outstretched arms of an older man, who must have been her father.

I couldn't tear my eyes away from the scene. Somehow, it looked so familiar. Like it had been a distant dream.

A dream that I had forgotten.

Or was it a memory?

. . . . . . . . . .

_(Many years ago...)_

_A girl was busy colouring in her book as the fireplace crackled soothingly nearby. She was comfortably sitting on the thick carpet with her brows furrowed as she watched her red crayon fill the page. She worked attentively, making sure that she kept within the thick black lines. Next to her, a large dog laid down as he watched his young master concentrate. He rested his head upon his paws as he listened to the young child hum a song._

_As the girl worked, a familiar low rumble came from outside and the girl's head shot up, her heart beating excitedly. She scrambled to her feet and scurried onto the plushy sofa to look out the windows. The darkness was parted by two beams of light, illuminating the white flecks of snow falling gracefully towards the ground._

_Without hesitating, the girl hopped to her feet and ran towards the door, her open robe flapping wildly behind her. Her excitement was contagious and the dog faithfully followed his young master, knowing that the big master was finally home. Delighted barks rang through the hallway as the girl hastily pulled on her snow boots and threw the door open. "Chloe?" a woman's distant voice called after her. "Where are you going?"_

_The girl, Chloe, chose not to answer because it meant slowing down. The snow crunched beneath her feet as she ran clumsily towards a large silhouette with her breath coming out in white puffs. The soft light from the house illuminated the girl's way and she called out, catching the man's attention._

_He turned at the sound of her voice and immediately bent down, opening his arms wide for the young girl to run into. "Papa!" the girl cried as she buried her face against her father's thick jacket, savouring his warmth and inhaling his familiar scent._

_He smelled like the way he was supposed to. He smelled like home. _

_Her father chuckled as he straightened, twirling her around. The girl's squeals of laughter rang throughout the night as the lights danced shapelessly in front of her. Finally, the world came to a stop. "My little sunshine," he murmured softly against her ear. "How I've missed you. I thought about you all day. But where is your jacket?"_

_Chloe giggled as she felt his stubble rub against her cheek, the prickly sensation tickling her skin. Even though her father seemed concerned about the low temperature, the girl didn't feel the cold at all. As a fleck of snow landed on her nose, Chloe looked up and smiled. Then she twisted in her father's arms, stretching her own towards his head. "Hat!" she exclaimed happily._

_The girl felt a low rumbling chuckle vibrate from her father's chest as he reached up and placed his furry hat on his daughter's head. The hat, which was too big, fell over her eyes and she let out a alarmed squeal as her world suddenly turned pitch black. Frantically, Chloe pushed the hat up and saw her father looking at her with amusement in his eyes. "You'll grow into it one day," he said softly as something big thumped against his leg._

_The girl's father looked down to see what caused the motion and a smile tugged on his lips. Then he bent down to retrieve a small red jacket from the dog, who let out a small yip. "Good, Vasily," he praised as he patted the dog's head, causing the dog's tail to wag happily._

_Slowly, the man set his daughter onto the ground and slipped the jacket around the young girl. Then he took her tiny hand. "Let's go home," he rumbled and they made their way back into the light._

. . . . . . . . . .

An obnoxious beep from behind caused me to jump, banging my knees against the bottom of the steering wheel. I winced at the pain as the impatient driver pounded the horn again. I looked up and saw that the light had already turned green while I had zoned out. With my heart pounding against my rib cage, I stepped onto the gas pedal, causing the car to accelerate.

As I drove home, I couldn't get the scene out of my head. It wasn't a dream or a fantasy. What I had just seen was a memory.

_My _memory.

One that had included a part of my past.

* * *

**A/N: Not a whole lot happened here, but we're still in the introductory stage, so things are going slow. But don't worry, it'll pick up soon. A lot of you are wondering about the whole revelation scene with Derek and Chloe, but it'll be a few more chapters before that happens. After all, they have to get to know each other first. ;) In the meanwhile, Chloe will get some flashbacks regarding her past, trying to unravel the mystery of her amnesia. ****Any complaints or suggestions? ****Please let me know what you think! Hope you guys will look forward to the next one!  
**

**-posted June 14, 2013**


	6. The Reluctant Truce

**A/N: Hey everyone! I'm back from studying! I'm glad to say that I felt the midterm went well. I'll be getting my marks later this week so hopefully they'll reflect what I felt. Thank you guys so much for all the great responses on the last chapter! It means a lot to me that you guys take the time to let me know that you're enjoying my story! Hopefully, I'll be getting back to my weekly updates as the story will be picking up soon.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Darkest Powers**

* * *

**Chapter 5: The Reluctant Truce**

"You're pretty quiet today."

I glanced up from my mac and cheese to look at my dad, who studied me from across the table. "Is something bothering you?" he asked as he speared some macaroni with his fork.

I had been replaying the memory of the little girl and her father in my head throughout dinner, unable to shake it away. _That_ girl was me. I don't know how, but I was sure of it. And the man... he must have been my biological father. My heart lurched in my chest as I remembered the way he had looked at me. I had been the centre of his world and he had loved me so much.

So what had happened to him?

That was one of the biggest questions I had regarding my past. When I was little, sometimes at night, I would wonder about my real family. What had happened to them? Why did they abandon me? And during those times, I came up with countless reasons.

_They couldn't afford to take care of me._

_I had gotten lost and my parents never found me._

And the list went on.

But the one that stood out from the rest was that something bad had happened to my family. Something that separated me from my biological parents. Something that stopped them from coming to find me.

I used to concentrate on trying to remember my past but each time, I only ended up with a massive headache and disappointment. Slowly, my attempts decreased in frequency until I just stopped trying. Maybe it was better to move on with my life. Forget all of the mystery surrounding my amnesia. It was probably buried for a good reason and I shouldn't go digging for answers. I told myself that and for a while, I lived a normal life.

As if I didn't have a hole in my memories.

But the memory of my biological father was a reminder that I had once belonged to a family. One that had loved me. And no matter the reason for why I was left behind, I couldn't bring myself to forget them just like that.

I had to solve this mystery. For my sake and for the memory of my biological parents.

"Chloe?"

But even if Steven Saunders wasn't my real father, it didn't make a difference to me. I still loved him with every bit of me; he was my dad. And I was forever grateful that this family had taken me in because they were everything that I could have asked for.

I gave him an apologetic smile. "Sorry. It's been a long day. I'm just tired," I lied, not wanting to worry him any further.

"Ah I see. Then you should probably sleep a lot earlier than one in the morning. Don't think I didn't notice your light was on."

I laughed. "Guilty. But _Supernatural _is so addicting. I don't know why it took me until now to finally watch it. It's actually kind of terrifying. Which makes it all the better to watch at night."

My dad rolled his eyes. "Well, as long as it doesn't interfere with your school work, you can keep your nightly marathons," he said. "Just sleep before one, okay?"

"Gotcha." I grinned. "Funny thing is that I added another course today. It was kind of last minute, so I'm currently on the wait list. It's a class on mythology."

"Like The Odyssey?"

"Mmm... not quite. More like warlocks, demons... monsters. That type of thing," I explained with a shrug. "Who knows, maybe I'll learn something from _Supernatural_."

"Uh huh. So why did you choose it?" my dad questioned as he began to clear the table.

I drained the last of my OJ and hurried to help him. "Here, I got it. You must be tired."

My dad thanked me with a grin and leaned against the kitchen counter as I scraped the remains of our dinner into the trash.

"Well, I was working in the library this morning and one of the professors had a stack of books on reserve. So I took them to his office and we chatted for a bit. His name is Robert Vasic and he's kind of weird, but in an interesting way," I answered. "So I took his class. It can help fill my humanities credit."

There wasn't any need to tell my dad about the real reason why I took Robert's class. Which is the part of me that could see and communicate with ghosts. As much as I loved my dad, I didn't want to bring my "ghost business" into the family. Not only would he have a hard time believing me, but I remember the fear that was on that boy's face in elementary school when I revealed what I knew about him, even if there was no way I should have known the truth.

People were scared of what they didn't know or understand. And I don't think that I would ever be able to stand the look on my dad's face if he ever knew about my abilities. With mom gone, he was the only person left who loved me as much as he did. So even though there was a part of me that wanted to spill my secret, I just couldn't do it.

"Did you have it already?" My dad's voice shook me out of my thoughts.

I nodded. "Yeah, I had it today. It was pretty interesting. We read a section about this monster that was cursed with two mouths," I said as my mood dropped when I remembered that there was a partner project involved.

And who my partner was.

I gritted my teeth as I rubbed the plate with more force than necessary. I still couldn't believe that I was partnered with that jerk. I was perfectly polite when I asked for his number and even then, he was an ass. "What's wrong?" my dad asked when he saw my scowl in the window's reflection.

I exhaled slowly as I let the water run. "Only that I'm paired up with the rudest guy I've ever met in a partner project," I said as I whipped around, exasperated. "He's done nothing but belittle me since I accidentally ran into him this morning."

My dad raised an eyebrow, looking mildly amused. "Is that so?"

"It was an accident! I was short on time," I explained. "But that doesn't mean that he has to act like he has a stick up his butt!"

I had to keep my annoyance in check when my dad chuckled. He didn't deserve my wrath, unlike a _certain_ somebody. "He better not ruin my semester," I grumbled under my breath as I finished washing the last few dishes.

A sly look crossed my dad's face in the reflection. "You know, maybe he _likes_ you," he teased as I wiped my hands on the towel.

I paused and gave him an incredulous look. "What are you? Twelve?" I said as my lips twitched in a smile.

"Maybe."

I grinned back as I snapped the drying cloth at him playfully. He yelped as he caught the end of it. "Well, that's _definitely_ not the case. He hates me and I hate him." I shrugged. "It's a mutual relationship between two people who are forced to be together."

"It might start out that way, but who knows. Maybe you guys will get along by the end of the project."

I frowned as I paused in the kitchen doorway. "It'd be nice, but I doubt it."

Even though today had been exhausting to some extent, I couldn't sleep. After tossing and turning for what seemed like an hour, I sighed as I laid on my side. Like earlier, my thoughts kept turning back to my biological family. It wasn't that I wanted to leave _this_ family. I couldn't bring myself to think of my life without my dad. But I wanted... no, I _needed_ to know what had happened to my mother and father. To know whether or not they're still out there somewhere. And once I had my answers, I could finally move on.

In the soft moonlight, I fingered my pendant. The ruby jewel was as familiar as my own hand. It had been with me for as long as I could remember. One day, I just woke up in an unfamiliar hospital bed with no memories intact. Other than my clothes, it was the only thing I had on me. I've spent countless nights examining each and every little detail of my necklace, hoping for a hint of my past. But no matter what, it was always the same.

Despite my failure, I knew one thing for sure; it had belonged to someone in my biological family. And for that reason, I kept it on me at all times.

I grasped the pendant, feeling its rounded edges pressing into the flesh of my palm. I closed my eyes and curled up before making a prayer to whoever might be listening.

_Please help me uncover my past. I don't want to be left in the dark anymore._

_. . . . . . . . . . _

The next morning, the very first thing I did before I went to class was stopping at the bookstore to grab my humanities textbook. There was no way I was going to let Derek rip me a new one. Even if it was kind of my fault for not checking the course requirements prior to taking the class.

I tried not to wince at how thick the textbook was; it could have doubled as a weapon. On the other hand, my bank account was getting lighter. Darn those student fees! I sighed as I dropped it off at my car. _Oh well, at least I'll get paid this weekend for walking Mrs. Jones' rat of a chihuahua. _I thought as I scowled at the idea of spending time with my neighbour's evil incarnate of a dog. Since she was recovering from a hip fracture, the task of walking the little nuisance fell onto me. But I got paid weekly and it did help with covering some of my gas money. So I couldn't really complain.

Once I was done, I hurried over to the library, shoulders hunching as the bitter January wind blew past me. Even if I was layered from head to toe, I couldn't suppress a shiver. It was a lot colder today, probably because of the storm that was coming from the south. In a few days, we were going to be hit pretty hard with snow. Maybe hard enough that classes would be cancelled.

The thought made me smile as a pair of glass doors opened for me, basking me in warmth. I sighed again, this time in relief as I started to unbutton my coat. I slid into the employees only room and waved to Amber, who looked up from placing bar codes on newly-arrived books. She scowled at me, which ruined the prettiness of her chestnut-coloured hair, as I dumped my backpack and coat in the corner. I frowned as I glanced down at my watch. "I'm not late, am I?" I questioned, confused as to what I had done wrong.

"No," she answered without looking up. Then she waved an arm in the direction of various preloaded trolley of books. "Those are yours."

"Okay. Thanks," I replied as she grunted, still focusing on her project.

I resisted to roll my eyes at her standoffishness. I was starting to learn that _that_ was her normal personality. Guess it wasn't just Derek who was always grumpy. If only the health student club handed out as many happy pills as they did condoms, then maybe everyone would be in a sunnier mood.

I pushed my cart onto the eleventh floor and secretly took out my printed map that I had prepared in advance. Considering that it was only my second day on the job, I didn't quite have everything memorized, so having it really helped. All the books on the trolley that I had chosen were to be shelved on this floor as well as a few requests made by students and faculty that I needed to hunt down.

It took me the good part of an hour shelving books, but I didn't mind it at all. I liked getting the chance to read through the various summaries, noting anything that I could take out later before I was hit with midterms. As I went through the aisles, the books on my trolley disappeared one by one until only a handful remained. At the same time, I was careful to keep track of the books that I needed to bring down for reserve. Considering that they were all apparently "checked in", Amber would probably freak out if I missed something.

When I rounded over to the next aisle, I was somewhat surprised to see a guy sleeping with his head supported by his arms on the table. We were on the second highest level, which meant that not a lot of students came all the way up here unless they had something they needed to take out. In fact, during my shift, I only saw one other person, who happened also to be part of the library staff.

I didn't pay him too much attention as I continued to shelve the rest of the books until I glanced at the last item on the reserve list. Apparently, the journal was supposed to be around this section, but it wasn't anywhere to be found. I groaned as I scanned the nearby shelves, wondering if someone had misplaced it. Or they may have taken it but not officially checked it out. But somehow, I didn't think it was very likely, considering it was a journal on past physics lab experiments conducted by a group of graduate students.

Physics was never my thing in high school and I hated all the theory involved, but even with my bias, I couldn't see this research collection to be in very high demand. In fact, I swore I saw some dust bunnies gathering on the top of some books here. I did a sweep of the nearby shelves, but I came up with nothing. _Crap. Amber's going to bite my head off for this._ I winced as I turned slowly, glancing at the opposite shelf.

Then suddenly something caught my attention. I stopped as my gaze dropped to the table, where the guy hadn't moved since I last saw him. There was some sort of paper bound journal buried underneath his arms. Slowly, I approached the sleeping figure and my heart leaped when I saw the just-barely-visible title: _Theoretical Quantum Lab Mechanics in the 21__st__ century._

I let out a silent cheer. It was the one I needed, but then I glanced at the hulking guy. How was I supposed to get it from him?

I suppose I could wait until he woke up and ask politely if I could have it, but I didn't know how long he had planned to sleep. On the other hand, I could also wake him up right now and get it over with. As my hand reached towards his arm, he suddenly shifted and I got a good look at his face. Then I froze; it was a face I knew well.

It was Derek Souza.

"Shit!" I cursed under my breath as I scrambled away from him.

Why did he have to be _here_ of all places? He could have slept _anywhere_ else! Not to mention taking the one book I needed. I wanted to howl in frustration. Fate seemed to hate me because in the past two days, Derek was _everywhere_. I pinched the top of my nose bridge as I tried to calm my galloping heart. There was no way I was going to wake Derek up and demand that he hand over the journal. It was practically the equivalent of poking a sleeping dragon in the eye.

Well, there goes that plan. Caught between two undesirable outcomes, I decided that I would much prefer Amber's silent exasperation than Derek's very verbal animosity. I would just tell her that someone had misplaced the journal, making it impossible for me to find. It wasn't like that was uncommon; it happened all the time. She would understand... hopefully.

I wanted to get as far away as possible before Derek woke up, but there were still a few books left on the cart. One by one, I put them back in their proper places and was left with one final book. A novel that was the size of the fifth Harry Potter book. The only problem was that it belonged on the top shelf, which was just barely out of my reach. I debated on whether or not I should just leave it on the lower shelf, but the librarian in me protested that if someone wanted to find it, they wouldn't be able to if I left it elsewhere.

I glanced at the top shelf and then back down at the heavy hardcover in my hand. Just one last book and I can get out of here. I took a deep breath as my eyebrows scrunched together in determination. Then I went up on my tiptoes, my arm shooting up as high as I could. The bottom of the book nearly skimmed the shelf and I struggled to get it an inch higher. "Come on..." I muttered through clenched teeth.

With my arms and legs straining, I watched as the book inched closer to the shelf. Almost there! Just when I thought I had gotten it in, I lost my balance and fell forward, smacking my face into the wooden shelf. I was temporarily blinded by the pain and I recoiled, holding my nose. But that wasn't all; the force of the impact had sent a number books raining down on me. I yelped as I did a duck and cover, the way we had learned to do in elementary school for earthquake drills. Books came down all around me and I held my fetal position until I was sure that nothing was going to hurt me.

After a moment of silence, I slowly lifted my head, taking a shaky look around. It seemed like everything was normal again. Then I heard a choking sound that sounded suspiciously like laughter. I spun around to catch Derek looking at me with part amusement and part disbelief. As soon as our eyes met, his face rearranged itself back into neutrality.

"H-how long have you been awake?" I demanded as my cheeks burned in embarrassment.

Derek raised an eyebrow as he leaned back into his chair. "Ever since you said 'shit'," he answered as I willed the earth to open up and swallow me whole. "You were pretty loud," he added.

I resisted the urge to bury my face into my hands. Not only had I looked like an idiot, Derek had to be the one who had seen everything.

This day couldn't get any worse.

Derek's gaze dropped to the books on the floor. "You were pretty close," he deadpanned as my mortification turned into annoyance.

"You could have helped me!"

He shrugged as he slung one arm around the back of his chair, looking bored. "Why would I do that?"

"It's called being considerate. Maybe you've heard of it?"

Derek rolled his eyes. "Don't short people usually get chairs or something to climb on top of? Could have saved you a lot of trouble," he said, his tone pissing me off. "Do you get money from the government for being so short?"

I scowled as I bent to pick up the closest book. It was a thick hardcover book and I had the strongest urge to throw it at him. "No," I snapped, my voice rising in volume. "Not everyone is as tall as you are, okay?!"

Derek looked unfazed by my words and slowly lifted a single finger to his lips. "Shh. We're in a library, _Miss Librarian_."

I bristled and I seriously considered throttling him. It took every inch of my self control to turn my back on him and resume picking up the fallen books. I couldn't let him get under my skin like that. I gathered up the rest of the books as I was more than aware of Derek's heavy gaze on me. Was it going to be like this for the whole semester? I really hoped not. I took a deep breath as I turned to face him. "Will you please help me with this set of books? I can't reach the top shelf," I said, trying not to cringe as I saw his face become smug.

He raised one dark eyebrow at me in question. I sighed. _Might as well get this over with_. "I would really appreciate it if you could help me out. I know I'm the last person you want to be paired up with for a project, but with the way things are, we have to deal with it. Otherwise, it'll be a really long semester," I said, staring him in the eye. "So, let's try to be civil to each other, okay?"

Derek studied me with those intense emerald orbs of his and I thought he was going to refuse. But after a long moment, he grunted, "Fine."

When he made no motion to help me, I gestured to my books and he sighed. Then in one fluid motion, he took the books out of my hands and quickly placed them in their spots on the top shelf. "See? I'm considerate," he said, answering my previous question.

I gave him a dry look. _Only because I asked you to. _While there was some very slight improvement, he still had a long way to go. "Thank you," I said as he grunted in reply. Then I glanced back at the table where the journal sat. "Do you still need that? Someone has put a hold on it and I have to take it downstairs."

Another grunt which I took to mean that he didn't care one way or another, so I slipped it onto the cart. I was about to leave when I remembered something. We still hadn't planned to get together. I turned to face him, who snarled a yawn. "So when are you free to work on the project?" I questioned.

Derek shrugged, his face impassive. "How about Tuesday evenings?" I suggested when he didn't say anything.

"Got work Tuesday and Thursday nights."

"Okay... how about Wednesday evenings?"

A moment of silence and then, "Yeah that's fine."

"All right. We'll work in the library after my shift," I murmured before glancing at my watch. "Is that okay with you?"

"Yeah whatever."

"Anyway, I got a class that starts in ten minutes, so I have to go. I'll see you in class tomorrow then."

His grunt was the only indication that he had heard me before I headed in the direction of the elevator. I held back a sigh. My partner was already starting to prove that he wasn't the most social of human beings. But at least now, I wasn't on the receiving end of his words. Which was better than with his reluctant truce, the odds of getting out of this semester in one piece were substantially higher than yesterday.

With that thought in mind, I entered the elevator with a lighter mood.

* * *

**A/N: It was supposed to be longer, with the chapter ending with Chloe and Derek's study session but with the timing, I decided to put it off until the next chapter. I hope you guys will like it because not only are there quite a few Chlerek scenes but a large chunk of lost memories will be revealed and they're really important to the plot of later chapters. I have it all planned in my head but it'll be interesting to see how it goes when I actually put my ideas to the screen.**

**I wanted to thank you guys who've been supporting me throughout the story! I can't say enough that your responses make me continue writing and enjoy what I do because I know that there's someone out there who wants to read what I write. So thank you guys so much! And in no particular order: **

**Eletha Landon, ****suzi1811****, ****keagan bolak****, ****krc101****, ****Gallagher girl1811****, ****rainbowlollipops15****, ****MoonWolfGirl13****, ****fireicegirl16****, ****Jabbawockeez – ABDC****, ****pigswithwings058****, ****kaitgirl****, ****Usaki4eva****, ****Hfanfiction****, ****DauntlessProdigy04****, ****Enecs****, ****Devii****, ****alicelover520****, ****Lightest'Ink****, ****MonkeyAssassin****, ****venomintheveins****, ****SayMyGoodbye2****, ****dragonfly1339****, ****bubblephoe23****, ****GigglingFangirl****, ****PatatoGirl****, I****nuyashagirl7692****, ****CatKitty123****, ****BabyCakezz**

**And my anonymous people:**

**emily, ashes to ashes, guest, Morgan Piers**

**Please let me know if I've forgotten anyone and I'll gladly add you on!**

**PS. Happy Early Canada Day and Fourth of July!**

**-posted: June 30, 2013**


	7. Flames from Hell

**A/N: Hey everyone! Thanks a lot for your awesome responses on the last chapter. I always love hearing/reading what you guys think and I'm glad that you guys seem to be enjoying Amnesia so far. This chapter was a lot of fun to write and it's the longest yet, so I hope you guys will like this one since I wrote most of it in a few sittings.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Darkest Powers.**

* * *

**Chapter 6: Flames from Hell**

I looked up from the textbook and gave my partner a skeptical look. "An abarimon, Derek? 'A humanoid creature that has backwards feet'," I read out loud. "How did _that_ even make it onto your list of potential project materials?"

Derek scowled as he looked up from my textbook. "It's _original_," he snapped as he gaze skimmed one of my tabbed pages. "Unlike the banshee."

"At least a wailing spirit that predicts death is more interesting than something than can run really fast backwards," I shot back. "What kind of short story could we write about that anyway? An abarimon who ran so fast that he tripped and fell on his back instead of his face?" I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, _that'd_ be super impressive."

Derek waved a hand dismissively. "Fine. Keep going then if you don't like it."

I sighed as I continued with his list. As planned, we got together in the library to discuss our project. We needed to create our own legend about a mythical creature, but the problem was choosing a topic. In the past ten minutes since we sat down on the near-empty eleventh floor, Derek had shot down nearly half of my list of potential mythical beings. And the ones he chose were all either super obscure or uninteresting.

Apparently he thought that mine were too overdone.

After a moment of silence, he spoke, "You disapprove of abarimons but the faun you picked isn't that much better."

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Half goat, half man? Seems like a recipe for failure."

"Hey, fauns are totally cool. Just look at Mr. Tumnus."

Derek's face screwed up. "Who's that? Your imaginary boyfriend?" he sneered as I scowled at him.

"_No_. He's from The Chronicles of Narnia," I explained as Derek's face remained impassive. "You know, the story about four children who enter a wardrobe and land in another world when their own is in the middle of World War II?"

At that point, Derek decided that whatever I was talking about was of no importance to him and returned his attention to reading the rest of my selections. I rolled my eyes as I let the subject drop. It was his loss if he had never read any of C.S Lewis' literary masterpieces.

Once it seemed evident that none of the creatures on my list were going to get his approval, I thumbed through the textbook, hoping that we could at least choose our topic by the end of today. Since the material was divided into sections by type, I skipped the monsters chapter.

And the humanoid component.

And the deities section because it was "too generic" as Derek had complained.

I sighed as I grabbed a chunk and flipped it in impatience. It landed with a rather loud _thump _that sent various pieces of paper skittering away. My partner glanced up at the action and I stared back at him, daring him to say something, but mercifully, he remained quiet. I peered down at the category I had turned to and paused.

It was the spiritual division.

And the page I had chosen featured restless spirits as well as its many subsections. I read the short profile which gave a brief description about what I was looking at. Basically, it was a type of human being before it met its end in a traumatizing manner, such as being murdered in cold blood or being burned to death. The left over energy and emotion from such an event manifested itself into a type of ghost. And that type of spirit remained in a state of limbo until its final request has been fulfilled.

It seemed so similar to what I thought about the ghosts wandering around me that I didn't stop to think. "How about restless spirits?" I blurted out.

Derek's gaze lifted slowly from the textbook and he gave me a weird look at my sudden enthusiasm. I didn't need to be a mind reader to know that he thought I was a "few cards short of a full deck". Normally, I would feel slightly mortified for my change of character, but I was too keyed up. I had spent most of my life questioning my abilities to talk to the dead and why I was the only one who could do it. It was a bit of a stretch, but maybe, just maybe, I could find some answers during this project. Not to mention how it also gave me an excuse to talk to Robert about ghosts without raising suspicion. Surely as a demonology professor, he must know something that could be useful.

But at the same time, I tried not to get my hopes up. After all, my plan would go down the drain if my reluctant partner refused to do this topic. I clenched my teeth as I sent him positive vibes, willing him to agree. He must have either sensed my urgency or he didn't feel like arguing because after a long moment, he muttered, "Fine."

Given his personality, it was probably the latter option, but I wasn't ungrateful that we finally came to a resolution.

The next hour was somewhat productive. We couldn't decide between a vengeful spirit and a violent one, but Derek suggested that we do some research on both before deciding which was better.

Derek wasn't the most social partner I have ever had, but he made up for that aspect with his diligence. Whenever I snuck a look at him from the corner of my eye, he was busy jotting down whatever he found, giving it his undivided attention. His brows furrowed in concentration as he scrolled down the page, looking for material that he could use, pausing only when he found something relevant. Sensing that he was being watched, Derek looked up and our eyes met. He scowled at me, returning back to the Derek I knew. "What?" he growled, annoyed.

"Nothing."

He gave me a dry look that said that I was wasting his time and returned to his work. I ducked behind the computer screen and held back a smile. Derek was a lot more tolerable when he was like this instead of being the guy who enjoyed barking at my every misstep. If only he could continue to be his studious self during other times as well. Then maybe this partnership wouldn't be too bad.

As we worked into the night, the silence between us was only broken by the occasional whistle by the wind outside. The storm that was bombarding the southern states a few days ago had finally made its way to New York. With both wind and snow, most of the students had already left campus, not wanting to be caught in the middle of it. When another howl cut through the atmosphere, I felt the hair on my arms rise at the eerie sensation. "It seems like it's getting crazier out there," I murmured as the scratching of Derek's pen paused.

A grunt. Then the scratching sound continued as if I hadn't interrupted his train of thought. I rose from my chair and walked over to the window, squinting to see through the dark. I couldn't see much, but a glance at the light from the lamp post told me that the snow was still coming down hard. Enough that the once-cleared roads were covered again by a light blanket of white powder. My dad had suggested getting snow tires during the weekend and I was glad that I had taken his advice. Without them, it would be hard to get home.

"Maybe we should call it a night," I suggested. "As much as I like the library, I have no intention of staying here over night."

Derek glanced up and with his frown, I almost expected him to protest. Instead, he sighed. "Fine," he murmured as he began cleaning up. "Let's see what you got."

I handed over my sheet on ghostly legends over the centuries and took his in return. His handwriting was slightly neater than a lot of other guys I knew, but even then, it reminded me of my doctor's messy scrawl. Even so, he had worked hard and managed to fill most of the page with various facts of ghost sightings and other information. His notes were quite detailed in their explanations and he added some suggestions on the side as to which ones were the most relevant to what we needed. "Looks good," I commented.

Derek took a moment longer to read over what I found and wordlessly returned it to me. When I had seen Derek's sedulous attitude, I had doubled my efforts with my work, hoping to make an impression. So if I was expecting him to be awed by my note taking skills, then I was disappointed. But he didn't seem to be pissed off, which was better than nothing.

After we finished tiding up, we hauled our backpacks and headed to the elevator. I watched the doors close as Derek pushed the ground level button. "So what's your major?" I asked as the elevator's machinery hummed around us.

"Why do you want to know?"

I shrugged. "Just making conversation. The point of partner projects is to get to know who you're working with. So it'd be pretty sad and pointless if all we got out of this was each others' name," I said as I gave him a pointed look.

A sigh. Then a reluctant reply, "Physics." As I opened my mouth with my next question, Derek added. "Second year."

"So that makes you only a year older than me," I murmured. "I'm turning 19 in a few months."

Derek shook his head. "No. More like two years. I'll be 21 in February," he clarified. "Took a year off to work."

"Oh." Now that he mentioned it, he did say something about a job the last time we spoke. "So where do you w-"

My question was cut off as a sudden lurch that sent me stumbling forward. I regained my footing and whipped my head around. "W-what was that?"

Derek didn't answer right away as he frowned. He placed a hand against the elevator's wall and he let out a curse. "The elevator stopped," he said as the lights began flickering overhead.

I stared at him as I felt panic set in. There was no way we could be trapped up here. It had to be a joke. A _really _bad joke. "P-please tell me you're kidding."

He gave me a look that said quite plainly, _Do I look like I'm kidding? _When I gave him a skeptical look he rolled his eyes in exasperation and jerked his head towards the indicator screen. "Look for yourself."

The screen which normally showed the level was now blank. My heart sunk as I noticed that the glow from the normally lit buttons was gone too. I swallowed, trying to ease my anxiety. Panicking wouldn't help either of us get out of here. _Just because the elevator has stopped doesn't mean that your brain has too. Think, Chloe!_ I glanced around the elevator, looking for something that could help when I saw the column of buttons. I blinked as the gears started to shift in my head. Wasn't there usually an emergency button?

Without further thought, I leaned closer and saw the familiar red button. I quickly pressed it. "H-hello? Is anyone there?" I called as Derek shifted closer towards me, eager to hear a reply as I was.

When no one answered, I pressed it again. "Please, if someone's there, please respond! There are two people trapped in the elevator."

Again, nothing. Not even static. I decided to try again. "Hello? Anybody th-" Derek suddenly batted my hands from the buttons. "-hey!"

"It's no use. We're not getting through," he rumbled as he reached into his pocket. "Try your phone."

I unlocked the screen and watched my phone light up. However, the signal was noticeably absent. I raised my arm and randomly waved it around, hoping for something different. But again, there was nothing. "There's no reception," I said, my voice sounding strained. "Yours?"

Derek shook his head in the dim lighting. Then a whisper of clothing as his silhouette sat down, leaning against the wall. "The storm's probably screwing everything up. We're going to have to wait it out."

This couldn't be happening. I looked at the hatch on the ceiling and thought about every action movie that had a scene where the elevator stopped working. In one scene, the main hero realized that he was trapped and through some crafty manoeuvring, he managed to get the hatch open and climbed his way to the closest floor. I couldn't see how well it was bolted down, but considering how old this building was, maybe there was a way to open it.

If Derek boosted me up then...

"Whatever you're thinking, it's not going to work," Derek rumbled in the dark.

"Huh?"

"You were thinking about opening the hatch, weren't you?" A derisive snort. "Most of them are bolted from the outside, which stops stupid ideas like yours from happening. Even if you somehow managed to get out, you'd probably get electrocuted."

I scowled at him, not appreciating the image of an extra crispy Chloe. "At least I'm trying to think of a way to get out of here," I shot back, annoyed.

"And I'm trying to tell you that there's nothing we can do. Anything else is just a waste of energy. Besides, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that the elevator has stopped. Help will arrive eventually. Might as well make yourself comfortable in the mean time."

I wanted to stay mad at Derek, as if this was all his fault. But I knew that he was right; there wasn't much that we could do.

We had to wait it out.

I sighed as I slid down, feeling defeated. Just how long would it take for someone to realize that we were stuck up here? It was pretty late into the evening, which meant that there weren't a lot of students hanging around. But the librarians who had the evening shift were still here. Would they check to see if the elevator was running before they closed the library? I really hoped so.

I had joked about staying in the library over night because of the storm, but now, it started to seem like it could really happen. I glanced around the elevator, as I felt my unease grow. Ever since I was younger, I have never liked dark small places. I didn't know why, only that they made me restless. I shut my eyes tightly, as if it would help.

It didn't. It only made it seem darker.

_A distant crackle sounded in the darkness._

What was that? I wondered as the enclosed space suddenly grew hotter. The walls seemed to be closing in on me and my fear spiked. It was getting harder to breathe.

Inhale. Exhale. My eye blurred with tears as I struggled to respire.

_Hot_. _Can't. Breathe._

Why was it so hot? Sweat dripped down my face as my breath was expelled past my parched lips. My throat felt like it was burning. Everything was scorching around me and I opened my mouth to scream, but I couldn't hear my voice.

Not over the roar of the flames.

I was trapped.

Just like that time.

. . . . . . . . . .

_(Many years ago...)_

"_Chloe."_

_A hard shake rustled a young girl from her sleep. She let out a small whimper as she rubbed her face, unhappy with being woken from her slumber. The girl had finally fallen asleep, her fever making it hard to rest. Now she felt her pounding head and she wanted to cry. "Shh, you have to be quiet," a female voice whispered. "Please, sweetheart. There's no time."_

_The urgency in the voice brushed away the last remnants of sleep and Chloe opened her eyes to see her mother's strained face. It was an unfamiliar expression, one that Chloe didn't understand. Her mother was always so full love and warmth that this different look scared the girl._

_It was almost like looking at a stranger. _

"_Mama?" she questioned, her fever forgotten. "What's going on?"_

_The girl's mother glanced behind her nervously, as though she heard something that the girl could not. When woman faced the young child again, her face was tight with forced lightness. "We're going to play hide and seek. Your favourite game. But you have to promise to be very quiet, okay, baby?"_

_Normally, Chloe loved to play hide and seek, a game that she could play for hours on end, but there was something in her mother's tone that caught her attention. She seemed almost terrified. Which was wrong because her mother and father weren't scared of anything. "Where's Papa? And Vasily?" Chloe asked as she looked over her mother's shoulder, expecting to see her father waiting for her with his open arms._

_In the moonlight, Chloe watched as a whirlwind of emotion flickered on her mother's face. Knowing that her young daughter was watching her, the older woman closed her eyes, refusing to let her child see the tears that threatened to spill._

"_Mama?" Confused by her mother's actions, Chloe reached up and patted her mother's cheek, willing for her to open her eyes._

_The girl's mother looked down at her and forced a grin, looking like the woman that Chloe had remembered. "Where do you think? Papa's counting downstairs and Vasily is with him. He's going to come up any minute now, so you better hurry and hide," she whispered urgently._

_Chloe let out a surprised squeal and quickly muffled the sound with her hands, instantly forgetting about her mother's strange attitude. She threw back the covers and slipped out of bed, her head turning side to side as she looked for a place to hide. Under the bed? No, that was too easy. What about beside the bookshelf? She'd be found right away._

_As the young girl tried to decide on a hiding place, her mother suddenly took her hand and led her to the closet. "Hide in here. Go in as far as you can. You'll be hidden by the jackets," she whispered. "And remember, not a sound!"_

_Chloe nodded as she slid into a comfortable spot, hidden from view. "Can you see me?" she whispered back._

_The girl's mother smiled. "I can see you, but that's only because I know you're there."_

_The little child frowned as a sudden thought came to her. She had finally found a good hiding spot, but it would be ruined if her mother gave her away. "Shhh. Don't tell, okay?"_

_A strange look crossed the woman's face. "I will never tell. No matter what," she murmured, her voice steady as she looked at her young daughter. "But you have to stay hidden for a long time, baby. It will be a very long game."_

_The girl frowned again, puzzled. Even though she was good at hiding, her father always found her in the end. It couldn't possibly be that long. "I don't understand," she breathed._

_Her mother said nothing as she brought a hand up to the pendant she always wore around her neck. She clutched it tightly for a moment before taking it off. "Mama? What are you doing?" Chloe whispered._

_Wordlessly, the woman dropped the pendant over the little girl's head, watching as the ruby stone settled in its new place. Chloe looked down at it, confused. It belonged to her mother. Why did she give it to her? "Chloe," the woman's voice called softly and the child's head snapped up to look into her mother's serious blue eyes. "You must listen very carefully, okay?"_

_A nod. "You must never take this off. No matter what. It will keep you hidden from _him_," her mother explained, though Chloe still didn't quite understand. _

_How did a necklace keep her hidden from her father? But even then, she nodded because she knew that it was important._

_The seriousness slowly dissolved from the woman's face as she studied the child. A look of anguish replaced it as the young mother knew that her time was up. She would have done anything to grant her more time, but she had to leave now before _he_ came. Raising a hand, the woman stroked the pale cheek of her child lovingly for the last time. "There will be a chance that you might not remember any of this later, but if that happens, I won't be mad. Papa and Mama only want you to live a safe, happy life, even if it means forgetting the memories of this house. Just never forget that we love you so much and we will always love you," she whispered before pressing a kiss on her daughter's forehead._

_Chloe smiled as she felt her mother's lips brush her temple. "I love you too, Mama. Tell Papa that I love him too, 'kay?"_

_A pause. Then, "I will. Now, shh."_

_The woman stole a moment longer to look at the little girl before closing the closet door, allowing the darkness to envelop her daughter._

_Chloe was giddy with excitement as she remained tucked away behind the long jackets and blankets. It was a good hiding spot, one that will take her father a while to find her. It was so good that he might even give up. But as she sat there, her knees drawn up and with nothing to do, she felt her fever return. Her breath felt hot as her heavy head bobbed miserably in the small enclosed space. Although she had no idea how much time had passed, it had seemed like it had been a long time since her mother had left. What was taking her father so long?_

_Just as she was about to drift off, a creak from the floorboards was heard and Chloe stiffened, alert once again. Was it her father? Had he finally found her? Chloe held her breath, waiting for his familiar footsteps, but they never came. She frowned, beginning to wonder if she had merely imagined it. But no, the girl was certain that she had heard the click of the door knob as it retracted from the hole. _

_Someone was definitely there._

_The young child wanted to throw the closet door open and jump into her father's waiting arms, ending this endless game. But her mother's warning echoed in her head and Chloe hesitated. No, she would wait until she was found, like she had promised. Besides, it couldn't be long now._

_Chloe's eyelids drooped at the late hour and she fought to stay awake. However, after some time, she lost the battle and drifted off, unaware of the steadily rising temperature around her. She slept fitfully, as she tossed and turned on a bed of old blankets, her fever making her restless. Sweat poured down her face as she moaned at her discomfort._

_It was hot._

_So hot. _

_Breathing became difficult until the young girl sputtered a cough, her mind jolted awake. She wheezed as she struggled to breathe. Her eyes were watering with the effort. "Mama," she croaked, her voice broken._

_Just where was her mother? Why was it so hot? The girl coughed again as she inhaled a familiar substance. It smelled like something was burning. Then her heart hammered as she realized this, fear setting in. Her eyes went to the narrow slit under the closet door and saw smoke coming in from the bottom. "Smoke," she whimpered as she scooted back._

_What should she do? She was told to stay in here but where were her parents? Why were they taking so long? Chloe glanced at the door again, as she tried not to breathe in the smoke. It was hot. Too hot to be normal. She had to get out of here._

_Chloe pushed against the closet door, but it didn't open. Heart thundering in her chest, she tried again and again. But it wouldn't move. A sob broke through as tears rained down her cheeks. The game was no longer fun. She wanted to get out. "Mama! Papa!" she screamed as she beat her tiny fists against the door._

_It didn't budge and the girl continue to cry, pushing helplessly against the sealed door. "I d-don't wanna play anymore," she cried as she slumped to the ground, exhausted by her futile efforts. "I want out! Mama! Papa! Where are you?"_

_The heat made her uncomfortable as she called for her parents. The smoke made it hard for her to breathe and she coughed in between her sobs. It hurt so much._

_The warm temperature made her mind foggy as she tried to think. Her head began to drop as she struggled to stay awake. The girl knew that she was in danger and had to get out. Crying wouldn't save her. But escaping would. Slowly, she rose, clenching her fists at her side as she took a run at the sealed door._

_Pain soared up her arm as she bounced back from the impact, crashing into the opposite wall. The young child gasped at the pain, unintentionally inhaling a mouth full of smoke. Her throat burned as she coughed again, tears blurring her vision. She squinted at the closed door with anger as she got back on her feet. Shaking with fear and determination, Chloe charged at the door again, putting her entire weight against it._

_With a loud crack, the door burst open and she landed harshly on the ground. Wincing at the impact, she looked up and her eyes widened at the sight in front of her._

_It was a world of fire._

_Everything was ablaze. Her bed, her desk... everything. It didn't look anything at all like her room._

_She stared at the mess, mesmerized by the sea of flames dancing in the dark until another loud creak sounded behind her. Whirling around, Chloe saw that the inflamed closet door was barely hanging onto the melted hinges. It swayed for a moment before gravity took its course. Chloe yelped, scrambling out of the way as it came crashing down next to her. A flaming shard flew past her cheek and she let out a cry as she felt it sting._

_With shaking fingers, she touched the wound, recoiling when she saw that her hands were wet with blood. Her blood._

_She had to get out of this sea of fire._

_Tears streamed endlessly down her face as she crawled towards the entrance of her room, coughing fitfully as she inhaled the smoke. "Mama," Chloe wheezed hopelessly, her voice drowned out by the roar of the flames._

_With every step, her body felt heavier than ever. Her eyelids drooped from the strain, wanting nothing but bliss. She knew it was wrong, but Chloe wanted to sleep. This was too tiring. Too painful. Her arms gave way and she slumped onto the floor, too exhausted to move._

_It was better if everything ended._

_As her vision blurred, a shadow ran towards her just before her world turned black._

_. . . . . . . . . . _

"Chloe!"

A pair of hands shook me roughly as my eyes snapped open, gaze unfocused at first. Then after a moment, I realized that I was on my back with Derek's green eyes staring down at me, looking slightly freaked out. I breathed as my thundering heart threatened to burst out of my chest. That was all I could do. Inhale. Exhale. The air was clean and I couldn't get enough of it. It felt so good to breathe normal air.

"Hey." Derek sounded uncertain, as he slowly released me. "You... okay?"

The question came hesitantly, as though he was bracing himself for another episode. I lifted myself off the floor and ran a hand over my sweat-soaked face. "Y-yeah. I think so," I whispered, my voice hoarse as I blinked hard, shaking away the last remnants of the memory. "W-what happened?"

"You were suddenly hyperventilating and then you were having a fit or something," Derek said quietly as he studied me. "I couldn't get you to snap out of it."

I swallowed as I was hit with another load of sensations, the memories overwhelming me. The house. The closet. The fire. As well as what it had all meant.

My eyes blurred with tears as my breathing quickened. Derek, who noticed the change in my actions, became wary. "Stop that," he snapped. "Calm down."

There was nothing calming about his voice as he sounded rather perturbed. In any other situation, I would have marveled at the display of emotion, which was so different from his usual sarcastic, condescending attitude. But I was too worked up to care. Derek swallowed thickly as he tried again, his voice softer this time. "Hey. Talk to me. What's wrong?"

Shakily, I raised my head to look into his green eyes. They seemed brighter in the dim lighting and I wanted to focus on them and forget the truth.

But I couldn't.

"My parents..." I whispered as the images flooded my mind. "... They're dead."

* * *

**A/N: Not too sure how much of the flashback made sense as well as the scene where Chloe heard the fire crackling right before it. I wrote it at one in the morning the other day, so I'm hoping it makes somewhat sense. It's basically like in a show or movie where the character hears the audio before experiencing the flashback. I was kind of going for that effect, but I'm not sure if I did it correctly here. As for what happened with Chloe's biological parents, I can't reveal just yet, though many of you probably have your own suspicions. (I'd love to hear your theories) But in any case, it didn't end out well for them. Anyway, please let me know what you think and I hope you guys will look forward to the next one! **

**-posted on July 5th, 2013**


	8. Warmth in the Unlikeliest Place

**A/N: Hey guys! Thanks for all the great responses on the last chapter. It was a tough, but interesting chapter to write since it was fairly important to solving the mystery. Loved hearing your thoughts on it. Just wanted to let you guys know about the collaboration piece that Eletha Landon and I are working on. She is an amazing author who has written so many great pieces for Darkest Powers (just to name a few: Tram Wrecked, Forbidden etc.) and I'm honoured at the chance of working with her. The piece is called "The Conspiracy" and you can find it on her page. She'll be writing the first and third chapters while I'll be doing the second and fourth chapters. So if that piqued your interest in any way, go check it out!**

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**Chapter 7: Warmth in the Unlikeliest Place**

The dim emergency lights flickered above us, illuminating the disbelief on Derek's face. He stared at me as though he had heard me wrong. After a moment, he blinked hard and refocused. "What?"

The word came out skeptically and I knew that he was questioning my sanity. Derek proved so when he added, "Are you crazy?"

Normally, I would have been offended by his blunt phrasing, but I couldn't really blame him. After all, I could barely wrap my head around what I had just remembered. I swallowed, throat burning at the action. "No," I whispered as I drew my knees to my chest and gripped them fiercely. "T-they died in a fire."

Even though I didn't see them perish in the fire, I knew that they didn't survive. Otherwise, they would have done all they could to get back to me. My vision blurred and I hastily wiped my eyes with my jacket. From a young age, I had always wanted to know what had happened to my parents. Even if they had abandoned me, I needed to know if they were still out there somewhere. That they were okay. But now, I had my answer.

And although a piece of the puzzle was recovered, another part of me despaired at what I had found.

Derek let out a breath as he brushed back his bangs. Tension rolled off him in waves as he crouched in front of me, unsure of what to do.

Apparently, crying girls weren't part of his expertise.

After a moment's struggle, he lowered himself to the floor and crossed his long legs, facing me. "You're not making any sense," he rumbled finally.

I sniffled as I fought back the memories. They were painful to bear. The warmth of my mother's smile. The way my father used to swing me around until we fell down, giggling at the spinning world around us. They were both gone. I clenched and unclenched my hands as my heart felt like it was being squeezed.

Seeing my inner turmoil, Derek cut into my thoughts. "Hey. Look at me," he mumbled as I slowly opened my eyes to see him looking at me with that intense gaze of his. "Talk. I won't understand unless you say something."

I took a shuddering breath. "I-I'm adopted. Ever since I was little, I couldn't remember much of my past. I didn't know who I was or who my parents were.

"Every time I tried to remember, I only got a headache and eventually I just stopped trying. I thought that maybe this was a sign that I should, well, _move on_. But recently, I keep getting these glimpses of my past life and every time, I could remember how happy I was," I murmured as I brushed away lingering tears.

"Not that I'm _not_ happy with my family now. But those memories just kept at me until I realized that I couldn't just forget about my biological family. And just now..." My voice trailed off as I pictured my room ablaze, turning what was once my sanctuary into a fiery pit of hell.

"You saw what had happened to them."

Derek's voice was uncharacteristically soft as he finished for me. Even though he wasn't completely right, I wasn't in the mood to correct him. Shadows darkened his face, but I saw that his stoic mask had cracked, a hint of empathy betraying his otherwise impassive expression. Even though his words sometimes felt more like daggers, he was still capable of human emotions. After all, he was also adopted.

More than once, Derek looked as though he wanted to say something. To comfort me. To tell me that it was okay. But he didn't.

And I was grateful for that because there was nothing he could have said that could make the pain go away.

To distract myself from my memory, I tried to focus on the current situation. But just looking at our tight confinement was a reminder that I had nearly died hiding in a closet. I knew it wouldn't be too much longer before we were found, but I couldn't help but feel the closeness of the walls around me. It was too much like the closet.

"I want to get out," I whimpered as I held the sides of my head, squeezing my eyes shut. "I can't stand this for much longer."

My voice was oddly high-pitched from my anxiety and I hated that something as mundane as claustrophobia could affect me to this extent. Closing my eyes didn't help as it made everything darker. Every breath came out strained as I tried to keep my breathing steady.

_Just focus on inhaling and exhaling. _That's what my dad always said whenever I felt scared and having that reminder made me ease up a little. It didn't change the fact that we were stuck in an elevator, but it helped me focus on each breath.

"Someone must have noticed that the elevator has stopped by now," Derek murmured, aware of my struggle. "We'll be out soon."

I swallowed thickly as I nodded slightly, trying to ignore the queasiness in my stomach. The back of my throat constricted at the familiar sour taste and I tensed. I _really_ didn't want to throw up. At least, not here.

Derek must have sensed that I wasn't that far from throwing up because he back away immediately, his eyes widening in alarm. "So you get along with your current parents?" he asked quickly as he tensed.

I waited for the wave of nausea to pass before opening my mouth. "Huh?"

"Just answer the question."

I inhaled slowly as my eyebrows scrunched together at the uncomfortable rumbling in my stomach. "_Parent_," I corrected through clenched teeth. "My adoptive mom died in a car accident."

"Oh." Derek rubbed his mouth and mumbled something that sounded like an apology but I waved him off.

I had heard a lot condolences from family friends and other well-meaning members of the community growing up. However, that didn't mean that I wasn't tired of hearing them. Derek struggled to find something to say but apparently, he didn't know how to climb out of this vexatious topic. Before the silence could stretch for too long, I decided to throw him a life saver before it got too awkward. "But my dad and I get along great," I said, recalling of some of my fondest memories.

When I was younger, I had fallen off my bike after hitting a curb and I had cried at the sharp stinging pain. But my dad had kissed my tears away and hugged me until I felt better. Then he had carried me all the way home on his strong back and I remembered feeling safe and warm being tucked away in his arms.

There was another time when I wanted to make a birthday cake for my mom but didn't know how. I ended up making a mess of the kitchen, much to my dad's bewilderment when he came home after a long day at work. But he didn't get mad. Instead, he had laughed and helped me clean everything up, before giving me a hand.

There were so many memories that I cherished about my dad and I couldn't think of what my life would have been like if the Saunders family hadn't chosen me. My dad was just such a big part of me that it scared me to wonder about the possibility of not being his little girl. I knew a lot of people didn't have a dad that was like mine, but selfishly, I was grateful that I was lucky enough to have one that loved me so much.

And I would never stop feeling indebted to whatever high powers that were watching over me.

I smiled in the darkness as I pictured my dad's caring face. Words alone couldn't describe what I felt about him but sometimes, they weren't the only things that mattered. Finally, I added softly, "He's all I could ever ask for for a dad."

A hint of a smile crossed Derek's face at my words and I did a double take to make sure I wasn't seeing things. It was an _actual_ smile. Not a sarcastic, dry or condescending sneer, but a legit smile. Sure, it was tiny, but it was much better than his usual scowl. "Good," he murmured.

His voice was soft but I could hear the slight trace of relief in his reply. Even though we weren't much more than strangers, Derek seemed genuinely glad that I was placed in a good family. Which made me curious about his own. Simon had seemed like a nice guy and a few days ago, I had noticed the two brothers goofing off in one of the lounge areas. I had been surprised to see that Derek was _capable_ of joking around. That and the fact that he had looked so carefree, unlike his usual aloof manner.

So, before I could change my mind, I asked, "What about you? You happy with your family?"

A look of surprise said that he hadn't been expecting that question. Feeling blood rushing to my face, I hurried on, "I mean, you've had it hard too. So I was just curious. N-not that you have to answer if you don't want to. It's perfectly fine if you don't. After all, I'm totally intruding on your privacy and-" I stopped, realizing that I was babbling and my blush deepened further.

Derek blinked before his entire face transformed in a matter of moments. Then I watched in amazement as he tried stifle his laughter behind a hand. His shoulders shook at the effort and it took him a few seconds before he recovered. When he lowered his hand, I could see a crooked smile on his face and I was taken back by the unusual display of emotion. With the dim emergency lights, his emerald eyes looked at me in amusement and I gaped at him, feeling slightly flabbergasted. _Derek's laughing. _I thought dumbly. _He looks so different when he smiles like that._

Derek rearranged his face back into neutrality and I felt a bit of disappointment when the laughter in his voice faded. It had been a low rumble, not unlike that of thunder. But it was warm and I had liked the way it had filled the small space, making the darkness retreat.

He paused for a moment before his entire body relaxed, losing some of that tension that I had always associated with him. When he glanced up, his gaze caught mine and I quickly looked away, mortified to be caught staring. "Good to know you're feeling better," he said, his tone relieved.

I forgot about my humiliation as I realized that he was right. While I was talking to him, I slowly took my mind off of my churning stomach and didn't feel the urge to taste my dinner a second time. Had it been intentional on his part? Before I could think more about it, Derek continued on, "Yeah. Just have Simon and my dad, but that's all I need."

I peered over at my cell mate. From his gentle expression, I could tell that he was happy where he was. I didn't know much about his past, but given that we had both lost our families, it couldn't have been easy for him either. I could remember the endless nights where I laid awake in bed at the group home, wondering about my future.

Whether or not this house was supposed to be all that I ever knew. If I would ever be adopted and loved by a family. And almost just as important as the rest: if I would ever solve the mystery of my past.

While not everyone had the same thoughts, I could recall that everyone at Lyle House wanted to belong somewhere, no matter how much they tried to hide it.

Derek was a lot harder to read than anyone I have ever met, but for some reason, I could somehow picture a lonely boy keeping to himself, telling himself that it didn't matter if he ever got accepted into another family. That he was fine all by himself.

For all I knew, I could be over imagining his past, but I felt a pang of pain and a strange nameless feeling that allowed me to connect to him in some way.

One time, he had been just like me.

However, I was comforted by the knowledge that he was doing okay and he seemed happy. Unlike me, Derek didn't seem to be weighted down by his past. He had either accepted what had happened to his family and moved on. Or it had happened too long ago for him to remember. As strange as it was, we were similar in a way and I wanted to ask about his biological family. Not to pry, but rather to confirm that weird familiarity that I felt towards Derek.

"What's up?"

I broke out of my muse at his sudden question. "Hm? Oh. It's nothing."

He raised an eyebrow. "You looked like you want to say something," he grunted.

I hesitated as I debated whether or not I could ask him about his biological family. It was quite a personal matter and he might not like it if I pressed him on it. We were finally inching towards friendship and I didn't want to undo the progress we had made. I have never really told anyone about my birth family, not even my high school friends or Rae. I hadn't expected that Derek would be the first to hear about them, but it just came out.

And honestly, it felt good to talk to someone about it. I had kept all of my feelings bottled up for as long as I could remember. There had been times that I wanted to talk to my dad about it, but each time I was worried that I would hurt him. To make him think that I didn't feel that he was, well, my _dad_.

The subject about my biological parents was always hesitant in my current family. They didn't know how much I remembered and I didn't know enough to contradict them. So, we didn't really talk about my birth family. It would be strange to start now after pretending for so long that I was too young to remember anything about my old life. And sometimes, it felt like a really heavy burden. That was why it came as a surprise and maybe even a bit of relief to finally talk about it.

However, Derek might not feel the same way and I was worried that I would screw everything up. When he looked at me expectantly, I sighed. _Well, here goes nothing. "_D-do you uh..." I motioned for a word, struggling to think of something. "...ever think about your b-biological family?"

Derek suddenly went very still. His long bangs covered his face like a curtain and the shadows made it impossible to see what he was thinking. A sense of dread filled me and I regretted asking my question. The uncomfortable silence stretched between us and I struggled to think of a way to recover. As I opened my mouth to tell him to forget about it, he answered, "Yeah... I do."

His voice was so soft that I had almost missed it. In those three words, I sensed a mix of pain and sadness and I felt bad for bringing up agonizing memories. So I accepted his answer and didn't press him for more details.

For the rest of our confinement, we switched to simpler topics and by the time the elevator ran again, I was relieved to see that Derek's mood had lifted from earlier. It turned out that we had only been stuck in the elevator for about an hour, but it didn't feel that long. Not with Derek there, anyway.

We gave our report on the incident to the head librarian and after they made sure we were okay, Derek and I were dismissed for the night. We walked towards the main door in comfortable silence until I noticed that Derek wasn't next to me. I glanced behind in surprise to see him lingering in the doorway. "What's up? Don't tell me you actually want to stay overnight," I teased.

My partner shook his head as he pocketed his cellphone. "Nah. Simon has the car tonight and he sent a message saying that he was going to be late." He shrugged. "No big deal. I'll just wait here."

"Oh." I glanced down to the car keys in my hand and I hesitated for a moment. Before tonight, I wouldn't have given it another thought and left on my own, but everything changed in the elevator. I couldn't have imagined getting to know Derek the way I did just an hour ago. I had glimpsed a peculiar side to him and it made me see him as a totally different person. Sure, I wouldn't be too surprised if Derek went back to the impassive, blunt, rude guy I knew from class, but even then, I wouldn't forget about what he did for me tonight.

So I held up my keys and added, "Want a ride?"

"Huh?"

I rolled my eyes. "I'm offering you an alternative to waiting for your brother and that's all you can say?"

Derek looked slightly uncomfortable as he rubbed his mouth. "No. I'm just surprised that's all," he mumbled.

I studied him and after a moment, I realized that it was possibility that he had never been offered a ride from someone before. At least someone who wasn't Simon. Given his anti-social demeanour, I didn't need to guess to know that he spent most of his time alone or in the company of his foster brother. Which meant that he probably didn't have a lot of friends either. "So your answer would be...?" I prompted.

Derek took a few seconds to weigh his options and finally said, "Yeah. Okay."

I hid a smile as I waved him towards the door. "Alright. My car's this way."

. . . . . . . . . .

Nearly an hour later, I stopped at the curb outside of a tall apartment building in a residential area that wasn't too far from my own. I had been surprised when Derek gave me the directions because it bordered on the other side of the forest that was a stone's throw from my house. To think that he had lived so close made me wonder if I had ever seen him elsewhere but didn't realize it. He could have even gone to my high school or any of the other ones in the district.

"So, you live here?" I asked, nodding towards the building.

It was a dumb thing to say, but I didn't know what else I could have said to fill the silence. Luckily, Derek didn't point out the obvious. "Yeah," he grunted. "Just me and Simon. We're from Buffalo, but moved here for school. My dad's still there though."

So much for him attending one of the local high schools. "Oh."

Derek unbuckled his belt and turned to face me. "So uh... thanks," he mumbled. "For the ride."

Again, he looked slightly uncomfortable and I had the impression that it wasn't very often that he expressed his gratitude. I smiled. "You're welcome, Derek."

As he stepped out of my cramped car, I realized that I hadn't said something that needed to be said, so I called out, "Hey wait."

Derek paused with his hand on the door and bent slightly to look at me. I swallowed as my gaze darted around nervously before meeting his. "I-I forgot to thank you for-" _Not freaking out. For listening to me. For just being there._ "-_everything _tonight," I said, grateful that it was dark enough that he couldn't see me blush.

Derek blinked as my words sunk in. Then he recovered from his bewilderment and shrugged nonchalantly. "It was no big deal," he rumbled.

For me, it _was_ a big deal, but I just smiled in return as he leaned back. "Is that it?"

I nodded. "Yeah, that's it. Good night, Derek. See you in class."

He replied with a grunt before he shut the door. I watched as his dark silhouette lumbered towards the apartment and slipped inside. Then I started the ignition and drove away, smiling to myself.

_Good to know that some things don't change._

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**A/N: Somewhat of a bittersweet chapter, but I hope that Chloe's feelings and moods were plausible in this chapter. I wanted to transition her fear and anxiety from being in a cramped space to forgetting about it when she was distracted by the conversations between her and Derek. As for Derek, he initially started out as being slightly startled by Chloe's sudden drama then wary when she was feeling like she wanted to throw up. Then to slowly relaxing. It was a rather difficult chapter for me because there was a lot of emotion everywhere, but hopefully it wasn't too much of a mess. That and my brain's yelling at me to sleep, so I hope it makes sense. :) Let me know what you think and please look forward to the next one!  
**

**-posted July 19, 2013**


	9. Hide and Seek

**A/N: Hi everyone! It's been nearly a month since I last updated. I'm really sorry about that, but on the bright side, I'm glad to say that my finals are over! And that I'm really thankful for your reviews that kept me going through my study sessions. School starts up again in like 3 weeks, but I hope I can update again before then.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Darkest Powers**

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**Chapter 8: Hide and Seek**

"How's the essay going?"

I looked up from my notes to my friend Rae, who was busy sketching hexagons for her organic chemistry class. I shrugged as I twirled my pen with my fingers. "It's okay, I guess. Can't quite decide which side I should take," I replied.

Rae paused as she glanced at me. "What's the topic?" she asked.

I reached out for my notebook and flipped a few pages until I saw what I needed. "Uh, whether Oedipus is a victim of fate or if he had brought his doom upon himself through his actions," I said.

"'Oedipus'?" Rae repeated, her brows furrowed in curiosity. Then realization hit. "You mean _the_ Oedipus from the Oedipus Complex?"

I laughed. "Yeah. We're doing Oedipus the King for Greek tragedies in drama class. It's a pretty screwed up story, but kinda cool too." I peered over at her page, which was full of hexagon and branches. "I'd take this over your homework any day."

She grinned. "Damn. I was going to ask you if you wanted to trade. English sounds boring, but at least it'd be easier."

"Look on the bright side. You'll be an expert hexagon artist by the end of the semester."

"That'll be my back up job," Rae said, leaning against the back rest. "Speaking of English class, how's working with what's-his-face?"

My pen twirling stopped as I considered her question. The last time I had talked about Derek was when I was ranting about what a jerk he was and how I couldn't believe that a guy like him existed. He was an arrogant, condescending, rude know-it-all whose mouth didn't seem to have a filter. There had been a few close calls where I seriously felt like throttling him. I even debated about whether or not I should just march up to Gwen and demand to do the project on my own because it didn't seem like Derek and I would ever get along.

At least, that was what I had thought.

It had been three days since the elevator incident but on more than one occasion, my mind would wander back to what had happened then. It was a mess of a night, but I couldn't forget about the way that Derek had seemed capable of having human emotions. It could have just been the shadows that surrounded us, but he appeared genuinely concerned about my childhood as an orphan. After all, he had been one too, which might explain why I felt a strange connection to him that I haven't felt before.

It was a sense of familiarity and tranquillity.

As ridiculous as it sounded, I felt oddly _safe_ around Derek. It wasn't the first word that came to mind if I was asked to describe him, but I couldn't deny it. With his size and demeanour, I was wary of him in the beginning. But during that night in the elevator, those feelings changed into something that I couldn't quite explain. We didn't suddenly become BFFs, but in a way, Derek understood me.

The secrets that I've kept suppressed for so long came bursting out but even then, Derek didn't freak out or pity me. Instead, he knew what it must have been like for me and was relieved that I was happy with my family.

"_Good."_

That one word made me see him in a different light. His normally stoic mask cracked just enough to see that there was more to Derek Souza. And I was determined to find out what.

I shrugged as I continued my pen twirling. "He's not so bad. I think we're making some progress," I said finally.

Rae raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Seriously, girl? How did he go from 'being a major dick' to 'not so bad'?" she questioned.

"I might have judged him too quickly. But you can't really blame-" Something in my peripheral vision caught my attention and my voice trailed off as I looked at the stream of people milling about. Then I saw a familiar figure shouldering his way through the crowd with his trademark scowl. "-me."

Even in a crowd, he was easy to spot. Not only was he taller than most of those who surrounded him, but there was an air of cool detachment about him. His strides were long and purposeful. Not a step was wasted. Derek walked as though he was the only one in the world and I found myself staring. Instead of constantly swerving to avoid the incoming collision from the student body, everyone else parted like the Red Sea, as though there was some sort of impenetrable barrier around him.

Did he ever notice the effect he had on others? The way that no one could ever hold his stare. Or how they would avoid him on instinct? Knowing him, I'm sure he did. Nothing escaped Derek.

Vaguely, I could hear Rae asking me what I was gaping at but I couldn't bring myself to look away because if I did, I knew that I would lose sight of him. Without thinking, I called out, "Derek!"

With the noise level in the hallway, I didn't expect him to hear me. But he did. My partner paused mid step and glanced in my direction. A moment passed as he stood in the middle of the hallway, probably contemplating about the possibility of ignoring me. But after a few seconds, he exhaled deeply in resignation and stalked over to the lounge area, his scowl deepening.

I froze as I watched all six something of him approach. Crap, I had no idea why I suddenly called him out like that. It was just that I was thinking about him and before I knew it, his name had slipped out of my mouth.

"That's _him_?" Rae hissed with a note of incredulous in her voice when Derek was only a few feet away.

"Uh huh," I mumbled absentmindedly as I scrambled to think of a excuse as to why I had dumbly blurted his name like that.

When he finally arrived at my table, he seemed bigger than usual and his scowl indicated that he was annoyed at being disrupted. His eyes flickered briefly in Rae's direction, who was staring openly at him. I recovered quickly and made the introductions. "Derek, this is my friend, Rae. Rae, meet my partner, Derek."

Rae blinked and gave her head a sharp shake. "Hey," she offered, holding out her hand.

Derek snorted dismissively before boring holes into me with that intense gaze of his. "What do you want?" he rumbled.

"I-I...uh.. wanted to make sure that we're still meeting tomorrow," I said lamely as my partner stared at me, probably wondering if I had lost my brain some time between last period and now.

I tried not to squirm under his scrutiny and it felt like hours until he crossed his arms, not looking impressed. "Yeah," he said the word slowly, as though doubting my intelligence. "One o'clock at Mulberry Library. Don't be late."

I nodded. "Got it."

Satisfied that he was no longer needed, he left the two of us gawking after him. For some reason, I felt a sting of disappointment at Derek's indifference. Sure, I didn't think that he would suddenly become Mr. Super-Friendly after what had happened in the elevator, but I had hoped... well, I don't know... that maybe he would be a little warmer towards me. But obviously not.

Once he was out of earshot, a look of disgust crossed Rae's face. "Pleasure meeting you too," she muttered sarcastically as I turned to look at her. "He really is an ass. If he was going to be a jerk, he could at least have been hot."

A spark of irritation zinged through me at Rae's words. It wasn't Derek's fault that he wasn't cover model gorgeous. He didn't give me the impression that he cared about what he looked like but even so, it couldn't have been easy with everyone talking behind his back. "Leave him alone, Rae," I said sharply.

She held up her hands in peace. "Whoa girl, no need to get snippy with me. I was just pointing out the obvious."

"Well, don't."

Rae raised an eyebrow. "Never thought I'd hear you defend the guy after all of the complaining you've done about him," she commented.

I sighed. It was true that I _had_ ranted about him more than once to my friends, but that was before the incident. He had another side to him and I doubted that it was a side that he often showed to other people. His quiet compassion and understanding made it seem possible that we could become friends.

And that was something I wanted.

. . . . . . . . . .

_(Many years ago...)_

"_You can only hide in the house and the backyard. No attics or basements. Okay, Chloe?"_

_The girl looked at the older boy who studied her intently to make sure she understood. He would only play if she agreed to his rules. And that was fine with her. After all, she didn't like small, dark places like the attic. "'Kay," she agreed impatiently._

_The boy nodded once and covered his eyes, counting under his breath. Without another moment's hesitation, the young girl took off, her footsteps pattering across the wooden floor. _

_It was Chloe's favourite game: Hide and Seek. She needed a good place to hide because the boy always found her too easily. He had another name too, but she liked calling him "Night" in her head. Sometimes the name would slip out of her mouth, but the boy didn't mind. And that made her happy because she was the only one who could call him that._

_Each breath seemed to echo in her ears as she raced through the house, looking for a hiding spot and discarding each one as soon as she found it. It had to be a good place. One that would finally let her win. _

_Her head turned side to side as she passed the rooms and quickly made a left at the end of the hallway into the classroom. Once inside, a few heads glanced at her in curiosity as the girl breathed heavily. Her eyes scanned the room before noticing the teacher's desk. There! That would hide her if Night looked in from the door way. Quickly, Chloe made her way under the desk and pulled on the chair so that it concealed her._

_A face popped into view as another girl looked sideways at her. It was the new girl that came yesterday. She had light brown hair and light green eyes. Even though they haven't talked, Chloe thought the girl looked nice. "What are you doing?" she asked shyly. "Hiding?"_

_As Chloe was about to answer, an older voice sneered, "You don't know 'cause you're new, but stay away from her, Mila. She's a freak and you don't wanna be one too."_

_The girl, Mila, looked at Chloe in confusion and immediately backed away. Chloe's heart thudded painfully as she hugged her knees tighter, trying to ignore the laughter behind her. No matter how much she tried to make friends, they all stayed away. They called her names, but being called a "freak" hurt the most. She didn't know what a "freak" was, only that it meant that she was different._

"_B-but she looks normal," Mila protested from the other side of the desk._

_A snort. "That's just to trick you. She's a liar and a weirdo who talks to herself," said another girl._

"_Yeah," the first voice agreed. "We should get outta here. Before we catch whatever it is that she has."_

_More laughter followed as multiple footsteps retreated from the classroom and then everything was silent. Chloe shut her eyes tightly, not wanting to let her tears escape. She tried to tell them about the people that she saw but no one could see them except her. So everyone called her a liar too._

_Everyone except Night._

_He was her best friend. Her _only_ friend. But that didn't matter because he would have been her best friend anyway. Night didn't make fun of her like the other kids did. Instead, he understood even though he couldn't see the invisible people. He was alone too. _

_A freak. Just like her._

_Thinking about Night made the girl feel better. Who cares about the others? As long as she had Night, that was enough. She was enough for him too._

_Outside, she could hear the other children murmuring indistinctively and she realized a little belatedly that if Night looked into the classroom, the teacher's desk would probably be the first place he looked. So with a careful eye, Chloe made sure the coast was clear before crawling out from under the desk._

_As her shadow moved across the floor, Chloe looked out the window that faced the backyard. There, she could see the old plastic playground that stood alone with only a tree for company. The girl blinked as she studied the oak tree. Although she had never climbed before, she had often seen the older children do it. _

_It didn't look so hard. And it was a good hiding place too. One that Night wouldn't think of._

_As quiet as a mouse, Chloe snuck out of the classroom and into the hallway, listening for any signs of the boy. There wasn't. She frowned as she wondered what was taking him so long. Usually, he was fast at finding her. But not this time. _

_Chloe tiptoed down the hallway, wincing when the floorboards creaked beneath her. She made her way into the kitchen and slipped out the back door. Her shoes squeaked as she trekked across the slightly damp lawn to her destination._

_Up close, the old oak tree looked even bigger than it had from the classroom and Chloe hesitated. She didn't feel as confident as before. What if she fell? She gulped as she glanced nervously around her, almost expecting Night to pop out and declare himself as the winner. But again, no one was there. Chloe studied the tree again. There wasn't enough time to find a new hiding spot as Night was surely on his way now. She took a shuddering deep breath and grabbed onto the first handhold. _

_Slowly, she pulled herself upwards, scraping her shoes against the rough bark for leverage. Taking one step at a time, Chloe forgot about being afraid and it seemed almost easy. One hand, then the next. One foot, then the other. She breathed heavily as she gingerly hoisted herself onto a thick branch, rivulets of sweat dripping from her forehead._

_Once the girl managed to get herself into an upright position, she felt giddy with excitement. She finally did it! And all by herself too. As she swung her legs, grinning, her eyes drifted downwards and her smile slowly faded._

_It looked like it was a long way down._

_Chloe's heart started to pound in her ears as she realized something. She didn't know how to get down._

_Now that she thought about it, all the older kids had always jumped down. But they weren't as high up as she was. "Oh no," she whimpered as the world wavered around her._

_Shutting her eyes tightly, Chloe gripped the branch tightly as she tried not to think about falling. It would hurt. A lot._

_A small sob escaped her throat as she wished she hadn't thought it was a good idea to climb the tree. How was she going to get down? And she was all alone too. "Night," she sniffled. "What's taking you so long?"_

_The next few minutes felt like forever and just barely hanging on was all that Chloe could do. It was too scary to think otherwise. Just as a tear slipped down her cheek, a familiar voice called out, "Chloe! Where are you?"_

_It was Night. The girl opened her eyes and looked in the direction of his voice. He was in the yard, with his hands cupping his mouth as he looked for her. Relief made her hands shaky. Night was here. He would fix everything. It was going to be okay. _

"_The game's over. You win, okay? Just come out!" He yelled as Chloe heard the underlying worry in his voice that made her heart ache. She had made him worried._

"_Here! Night, I'm here!" she cried as the boy's head spun in her direction._

_His eyes widened at the sight of her in the air and he raced over to the base of the tree. "How'd you get up there?" he asked, looking up at her._

"_C-climbed here," the girl replied uneasily. "But I c-can't get down! What am I gonna do?"_

_The boy was at a loss of words as he stared at her, disbelief flickering on his face. "Why'd you do something so stupid?" he demanded as Chloe scowled._

"_It's n-not stupid!"_

"_Yes, it is. Getting stuck in a tree qualifies as stupid. You can't even get down."_

_Irritation flowed through her. After all, if Night had hurried up, she would have been in the classroom. Not in a tree. "It's all your fault for being so slow!" she yelled._

"_Miss Van Dop made me clean the bathroom!" he protested. "But forget about that. You need to get down."_

_Chloe forgot about her annoyance as fear settled in again. "I don't know how," she whimpered._

_Night took a step back and studied the tree as the girl felt her hands going numb from holding the branch so tightly. She didn't know how much longer she could handle staying on that branch. In fact, she'd give anything to be on solid ground again. "Hurry!" she cried._

"_I'm thinking," the boy murmured as his eyes darted from branch to branch._

_Then he let out a deep breath. "Okay, see that branch over there?" he pointed to the one closest to her and Chloe nodded, a sinking feeling bubbling in her stomach. "You need to get over there. Just go slow and hold onto the trunk."_

_The girl glanced dubiously over at the branch again and took a deep breath as she slowly inched over, her shaky fingers brushing over the coarse bark. The boy encouraged her gently from below as her foot reached the first foothold. Breathing heavily, Chloe kept her eyes on the trunk, knowing that if she looked down, she would lose her balance._

"_Almost there."_

_Chloe kept going. Moving her hands away from the trunk, a jolt of panic zinged through her before she finally got a hold of branch and crawled to safety. Sweat dripped down her forehead and she let out a shaky laugh. Relief washed through her as she pulled herself upright onto the branch, her legs dangling off it. "What now?" she called to Night below._

_He looked up and held his arms outstretched towards her. "Now you jump," he said calmly as Chloe's heart battered painfully against her chest._

"_No!" she yelled as she shook her head frantically. "No no no!"_

_The young child felt betrayed by her best friend. How could he ask her that? She thought he would be able to get her down without her falling. But she was wrong._

_Below, Night said something but Chloe refused to listen, protesting over and over again. She wouldn't jump. If she did, she would fall and it would hurt._

"_Chloe!" the boy shouted impatiently and Chloe froze, her hands lifting away from her ears. "Listen!"_

_Shaking slightly, she glanced down at her friend. His eyebrows were drawn in together as he widened his stance, determination crossing his face. "I need you to trust me," he said coolly, "I promise that I'll catch you. It's the only way down."_

_Chloe's gaze darted between the branch and the ground. It was a long way down and fear seized her. Oh how she wished she never climbed the stupid tree in the first place! Even if she did jump, how was Night going to catch her? He was bigger than she was, but not by a lot. "B-but..." she whimpered._

"_Look at me." She did. "I have never broken a promise to you and I won't ever. I promise that I'll catch you," Night repeated. "Nothing bad will happen. Not with me here."_

_Chloe's heart beat pounded in her ears as everything in her body protested jumping out of the tree. There was no way Night could catch her. They would both get hurt._

_But at the same time, she did trust him._

_He was her protector, brother and best friend rolled into one. He was the one good thing that happened in her life and even if she couldn't remember her old life, that was okay. As long as Night was with her. Looking into his eyes, she could see that he was determined not to let anything bad happen to her._

_So before she could hesitate, she closed her eyes and pushed off the branch. _

_The wind roared in her ears and her stomach plunged. _

_She was falling... _

_Falling..._

_Falling..._

_And then suddenly, she wasn't. Chloe landed against something solid and warm and everything stopped around her. She tensed, ready to feel the pain shoot up her body, but after a moment, it never came. Hesitantly, she opened an eye. Then the other._

_And she saw a relieved smile on the face she knew best. "Told you I'd catch you," the boy said smugly._

_He set her on her feet and it took her two tries before she got her balance. When she peered over at her friend again, her chin quivered and Night's smile faded. He knew the signs of someone who was about to cry. His eyes widened in alarm as he stepped back, inspecting her from head to toe. "Hey what's wrong? Are you hurt?" he asked as Chloe let out the first sob._

_She shook her head as she wiped her eyes with the back of her hands. "N-no..." she whispered. "It was r-really scary."_

_Chloe hiccupped and sniffled as Night relaxed, relieved that that was the only problem. He stepped closer to her and stroked her hair, making soft shushing noises. "You're okay now," he reassured her._

_When her crying eased a little, he wiped away a tear and tilted her chin so that Chloe looked up at him through watery eyes. "I guess I'll have to add 'no tree climbing' to the rules, don't I?" he said._

_Chloe let out a small sound that was a mix between a hiccup and a laugh. Now that she was back on the ground, she never wanted to climb another tree. Satisfied that his young friend was no longer crying, Night held out his hand. "C'mon. Let's get inside before the nurses wonder where we went," he murmured._

_The girl studied the older boy, feeling as though she had drank a cup of hot chocolate. Night always made her feel safe and cared for. She trusted him more than she trusted anyone else and with him by her side, she didn't need anyone else._

_He was enough._

_With a grin, she reached for his hand and they headed back to the house._

_. . . . . . . . . . _

I smiled as I burrowed under my sheets, savouring the warmth on a cold January day. It was one of my favourite dreams of my life at Lyle House. I treasured my memories of Night but no matter how hard I tried to remember what he looked like, I couldn't. Even in my dreams, his face was covered in shadows.

Night represented everything that was good about my time at Lyle House. Without him there, it would have been a lonely place. Contrary to the nickname I gave him, he was like my light. One that I could follow and depend on.

As kids, he kept every promise he made to me but even now, he still hasn't fulfilled his final promise: The one where we would meet again.

I had often thought about that little boy that I had left behind. Where was he now? Did he get out of Lyle House like he had planned? What was he like now? Would we still get along like peas and carrots? Or did he change so much that he was unrecognizable? And the biggest question of all: Was he still looking for me?

Anything was possible, but over the years I had learned not to keep my hopes up. After all, we were just two people in the world who ended up together in a group house. However, despite the improbability of our promise coming true, it was something that I would have liked to see happen.

I let out a sigh as I rolled over in bed, surveying the cold room with distaste. What I wouldn't give to spend the day in bed. After all, it _was_ the weekend and it wasn't like I had anything to-.

I froze as my sleep-boggled mind raised some red flags, telling me that I was forgetting something important. My heart pounded in my ears as I struggled to remember what it was that I was missing. Walking Tito for Mrs. Hobb? No, I did that the other day. Grocery shopping? Well, that wouldn't really matter if I did it today or tomorrow.

So what was it?

I scrunched my nose as I slapped the area where my alarm clock sat. Raising my head, I saw that it was nearly noon. Even on a weekend, I usually got up by ten, so I must have really enjoyed that dream. Still confused, I tossed my covers aside and crossed my room to my dresser, stretching my arms as I went. As I reached for my hair brush, a familiar textbook caught my eye and suddenly everything became crystal clear.

I had a study session with Derek.

And it was in an hour and a half.

I let out an oath as the last remnants of sleep faded away. I must have turned the alarm off in my sleep. I quickly grabbed a change of clothes and ran into the bathroom to freshen up.

Taking the quickest shower ever, I frantically towel-dried my hair with one hand as I threw my books and papers into my backpack. Then once I was somewhat presentable, I thundered down the stairs, causing my dad to look over in alarm.

"Good morning, kiddo. Where's the fire?"

I grabbed a piece of bread from the pantry and hastily spread Nutella on one side. "I overslept. And now I'll be late for my study session with Derek." When my dad frowned, I added, "The guy I'm partnered up with for humanities. He's going to freak."

My dad nodded in understanding as he typed something on his laptop. "Ah, _that_ guy. Well, he can't be that bad," he said.

I shrugged. "He's getting better, but he's still going to bite my head off if I'm late. Especially after he told me _not_ to be late," I replied as I grabbed the piece of bread with one hand and my keys in the other. "Anyway, see you later."

As I tugged on my boots, I could hear my dad singing off-key in the kitchen, "It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing..."

I smiled as I shut the door behind me. Even in the most dire situations, I could count on my dad to make me smile.

Thankfully, my little blue Mazda didn't have any trouble starting up and after estimating the time it would take for me to get to Mulberry Library, I guessed that I would have about fifteen minutes to spare. Which is pretty good, considering how I was in bed half an hour ago.

I sat back and tapped my fingers against the wheel as I listened to the radio, noting that traffic had slowed down significantly after the merge onto the highway. It wasn't anything alarming since this was what typically happened when the number of lanes decreased. But as another handful of minutes passed, everyone stopped moving altogether.

I could hear the sirens in the distance and my heart sunk. I was in the middle of a traffic jam, meaning that I was going to be late after all.

_Fantastic. Just bloody fantastic. Derek's going to have a field day._

* * *

**A/N: Not a whole lot happened here, more of a filler with another childhood memory of Night. But I thought it'd be a cute one to do. After this one, I hope to lay off the memories for a while... at least until we get to one of the major points of this story. I used to update weekly but with everything that's going on lately, I don't think I will be able to keep that up, so I'll be switching to bi-weekly. I hope you enjoyed the this chapter and please look forward to the next one.  
**

**PS. For those who don't know, I have a twitter account (link found on my profile) and I post my progresses on there. So if you're ever curious as to how much longer you'll have to wait for a chapter, you can check there to see how far along I am.**

**-posted August 16, 2013**


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